The next generation of drugs to fight HIV/AIDS is expected to reach doctor’s offices within a few months, according to a medical grand rounds lecture by Thomas C. Merigan, the George E. and Lucy Becker Professor of medicine.

The new drugs, known as fusion inhibitors, prevent the HIV virus from attaching to and infecting cells of the immune system. The virus normally replicates inside the immune cells, destroying the cell in the process. Without the ability to enter the cell, the virus can’t expand its population and the immune cells remain intact.

"There are major advances going on, and we all hope that these can be extended to the Third World," Merigan said.

The two fusion inhibitors being tested are comprised of a series of amino acids — the units that make up a protein. They are designed to bind the docking unit on the HIV virus, interfering with its normal function and preventing the virus from being able to enter the cell.

In an initial trial of 113 patients, Merigan said that fusion inhibitors were effective and had few major side effects. Merigan predicts fusion inhibitors could be combined with other anti-HIV drugs for an even more effective therapy.

Merigan expects the first fusion inhibitors to be available for patients later this year but warns they are likely to be expensive.