The increasing global prevalence of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is estimated at 36.7 million people currently infected. Lifelong antiretroviral (ARV) drug combination dosing allows management as a chronic condition by suppressing circulating viral load to allow for a near-normal life; however, the daily burden of oral administration may lead to non-adherence and drug resistance development. Long-acting (LA) depot injections of nanomilled poorly water-soluble ARVs have shown highly promising clinical results with drug exposure largely maintained over months after a single injection. ARV oral combinations rely on water-soluble backbone drugs which are not compatible with nanomilling. Here, we evaluate a unique prodrug/nanoparticle formation strategy to facilitate semi-solid prodrug nanoparticles (SSPNs) of the highly water-soluble nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NRTI) emtricitabine (FTC), and injectable aqueous nanodispersions; in vitro to in vivo extrapolation (IVIVE) modelling predicts sustained prodrug release, with activation in relevant biological environments, representing a first step towards complete injectable LA regimens containing NRTIs.

1-Deoxy-d-xylulose 5-phosphate (DXP) synthase is the first enzyme in the methylerythritol phosphate pathway to essential isoprenoids in pathogenic bacteria and apicomplexan parasites. In bacterial pathogens, DXP lies at a metabolic branchpoint, serving also as a precursor in the biosynthesis of vitamins B1 and B6 which are critical for central metabolism. Toward identifying novel bisubstrate analog inhibitors that exploit the large active site and distinct mechanism of DXP synthase, a library of aryl mixed oximes was prepared and evaluated. Trihydroxybenzaldoximes emerged as reversible, low micromolar inhibitors, competitive against d-glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate (d-GAP) and either uncompetitive or noncompetitive against pyruvate. Hydroxybenzaldoximes are the first class of d-GAP-competitive DXP synthase inhibitors offering new tools for mechanistic studies of DXP synthase and a new direction for the development of antimicrobial agents targeting isoprenoid biosynthesis.

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