Introduction: Development of new antiretroviral drugs which are highly potent, tolerable over the long term and with a high genetic barrier to resistance is essential for the treatment of a chronic viral disease that requires life-long therapy with near-perfect medication adherence. Integrase inhibitors (INI) are a new class of antiretroviral drugs that block the action of HIV integrase, which catalyses several key steps in the virus life cycle which are essential for insertion of the viral genome into the DNA of host cell.
Areas covered: Dolutegravir (DTG), a second-generation INI currently in the late stage of clinical development, is an effective orally available drug with a long half-life that does not need to be pharmacologically enhanced, is effective as a once daily drug in the absence of INI resistance mutations and twice daily in presence of INI resistance mutations.
Expert opinion: DTG, as other drugs in the INI class, appears safe and well tolerated. Results from ongoing large Phase III studies will bring more generalizable and robust information on the long-term effects of DTG.