Characterization of novel HIV fusion-inhibitory lipopeptides with the M-T hook structure

Combination antiretroviral therapy (cART) has significantly improved the survival of HIV-infected individuals, but long-term treatment can cause side-effects and drug resistance; thus, the development of new antivirals is of importance. We previously identified an M-T hook structure and accordingly designed short-peptide fusion inhibitor 2P23, which mainly targets the gp41 pocket site and displays potent, broad-spectrum anti-HIV activity. In this study, we continuingly characterized the amino acid sequences of peptide and lipopeptide-based inhibitors containing the M-T hook residues. Among a group of lipopeptides, stearic acid (C18)-modified LP-25 and LP-29 exhibited greatly improved inhibitions against divergent HIV-1 subtypes and drug-resistant mutants. LP-25 and LP-29 were evaluated in rhesus macaques, and the ex vivo inhibition data demonstrated their potent, long-lasting in vivo anti-HIV activity, with LP-25 much better than LP-29. Both the lipopeptides displayed high α-helicity, thermostability and binding ability to a target-mimic peptide, and they were metabolically stable when treated with high temperature, proteolytic enzymes, human or monkey sera and human liver microsomes. Therefore, our studies have provided critical information for understanding the structure-activity relationship of HIV fusion inhibitors with the M-T hook structure and offered novel candidates for drug development.