Once-A-Week HIV Medication Shows Promise In Early Testing

A new delivery system could make a once-a-week HIV medication a reality in the next few years.

The research, published in Nature Communications, was funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, and the Brigham and Women’s Hospital.

Patients would take a capsule that, once it reaches the stomach, would unfold into a star-shaped structure that would release medicine over the course of seven days.

The star-structure would eventually dissolve and pass through the body.

While at present some slow release drugs are available to be delivered via injection, most HIV meds are taken on a daily basis.

After testing on pigs, the next step will be to try the approach on larger mammals and then hopefully human testing within two years.

Convenience is a big factor in the new technology.

Giovanni Traverso, a researcher from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, says "Changing a medication so it only needs to be taken once a week rather than once a day should be more convenient and improve compliance."

More at the BBC.