Experimental HIV drug seems effective at a twice-a-year dose, study finds

Researchers at Gilead Sciences have developed a new therapy for HIV that could reduce the amount of virus in an infected person for up to six months. The therapy works to target the capsid protein on HIV, which protects the virus from attacks from the human body's immune system as well as helps the virus enter human cells. In a study published yesterday, scientists described how traces of the drug — called lenacapavir — was still found in 40 healthy individuals enrolled in a trial six months after injection. And the amount of virus in 32 HIV-positive individuals was significantly reduced only nine days after being injected with a low concentration of the drug. Still, experts are unsure of how valuable lenacapavir will be, especially since current HIV drugs are highly effective and convincing doctors to switch to a new drug may be a tough sell.