Antiviral and Cellular Metabolism Interactions between Dexelvucitabine and Lamivudine

Abstract

Studies on cellular drug interactions with antiretroviral agents prior to clinical trials are critical to detect possible drug interactions. Herein, we demonstrated that two 2'-deoxycytidine antiretroviral agents, dexelvucitabine (known as beta-d-2',3'-didehydro-2',3'-dideoxy-5-fluorocytidine, DFC, d-d4FC, or RVT) and lamivudine (3TC), combined in primary human peripheral blood mononuclear (PBM) cells infected with human immunodeficiency virus 1 strain LAI (HIV-1(LAI)), resulted in additive-to-synergistic effects. The cellular metabolism of DFC and 3TC was studied in human T-cell lymphoma (CEM) and in primary human PBM cells to determine whether this combination caused any reduction in active nucleoside triphosphate (NTP) levels, which could decrease with their antiviral potency. Competition studies were conducted by coincubation of either radiolabeled DFC with different concentrations of 3TC or radiolabeled 3TC with different concentrations of DFC. Coincubation of radiolabeled 3TC with DFC at concentrations up to 33.3 microM did not cause any marked reduction in 3TC-triphosphate (TP) or any 3TC metabolites. However, a reduction in the level of DFC metabolites was noted at high concentrations of 3TC with radiolabeled DFC. DFC-TP levels in CEM and primary human PBM cells decreased by 88% and 94%, respectively, when high concentrations of 3TC (33.3 and 100 microM) were added, which may influence the effectiveness of DFC-5'-TP on the HIV-1 polymerase. The NTP levels remained well above the median (50%) inhibitory concentration for HIV-1 reverse transcriptase. These results suggest that both beta-d- and beta-l-2'-deoxycytidine analogs, DFC and 3TC, respectively, substrates of 2'-deoxycytidine kinase, could be used in a combined therapeutic modality. However, it may be necessary to decrease the dose of 3TC for this combination to prove effective.