Thiovir

Thiovir (ANX-201) is an orally bioavailable small molecule pyrophosphate analogue that was developed by Adventrx Pharmaceuticals for the treatment of HIV-1 infection. As a structural analogue of foscarnet, Thiovir functions as an inhibitor of viral reverse transcriptase. It is designed to block viral replication by binding to the pyrophosphate-binding site of the enzyme, which prevents the cleavage of pyrophosphate from deoxynucleoside triphosphates and halts DNA chain elongation. Unlike nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs), Thiovir does not require intracellular phosphorylation for activation. The drug was specifically investigated for use in salvage therapy for patients with multi-drug resistant HIV, demonstrating in vitro activity against strains resistant to both NRTIs and non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NNRTIs). Development of the candidate appears to have been discontinued in the early clinical stages.

Brand names

Thiovir

Other names

thiophosphonoformic acidTPFA