In vitro resistance profile of the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 protease inhibitor BMS-232632

EMS-232632 is an azapeptide human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) type 1 (HIV- 1) protease inhibitor that displays potent anti-NN-1 activity (50% effectiv e concentration [EC50], 2.6 to 5.3 nM; EC90, 9 to 15 nM). In vitro passage of NTV-1 RF in the presence of inhibitors showed that EMS-232632 selected f or resistant variants more slowly than nelfinavir or ritonavir did. Genotyp ic and phenotypic analysis of three different HIV strains resistant to EMS- 232632 indicated that an N88S substitution in the viral protease appeared f irst during the selection process in two of the three strains. An 184V chan ge appeared to be an important substitution in the third strain used. Mutat ions were also observed at the protease cleavage sites following drug selec tion. The evolution to resistance seemed distinct for each of the three str ains used, suggesting multiple pathways to resistance and the importance of the viral genetic background. A cross-resistance study involving five othe r protease Inhibitors indicated that BMS-232632-resistant virus remained se nsitive to saquinavir, while it showed various levels (0.1- to 71-fold decr ease in sensitivity)-of cross-resistance to nelfinavir, indinavir, ritonavi r, and amprenavir. In reciprocal experiments, the EMS-232632 susceptibility of HIV-1 variants selected in the presence of each of the other HIV-1 prot ease inhibitors showed that the nelfinavir-, saquinavir-, and amprenavir-re sistant strains of HIV-1 remained sensitive to BMS 232632, while indinavir- and ritonavir-resistant viruses displayed six- to ninefold changes in EMS- 232632 sensitivity. Taken together, our data suggest that BMS-232632 may be a valuable protease inhibitor for use in combination therapy.