Long-Acting Rilpivirine (RPV) Preexposure Prophylaxis Does Not Inhibit Vaginal Transmission of RPV-Resistant HIV-1 or Select for High-Frequency Drug Resistance in Humanized Mice

J Virol. 2020 Mar 31;94(8):e01912-19. doi: 10.1128/JVI.01912-19. Print 2020 Mar 31.

Abstract

As a long-acting formulation of the nonnucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor rilpivirine (RPV LA) has been proposed for use as preexposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and the prevalence of transmitted RPV-resistant viruses can be relatively high, we evaluated the efficacy of RPV LA to inhibit vaginal transmission of RPV-resistant HIV-1 in humanized mice. Vaginal challenges of wild-type (WT), Y181C, and Y181V HIV-1 were performed in mice left untreated or after RPV PrEP. Plasma viremia was measured for 7 to 10 weeks, and single-genome sequencing was performed on plasma HIV-1 RNA in mice infected during PrEP. RPV LA significantly prevented vaginal transmission of WT HIV-1 and Y181C HIV-1, which is 3-fold resistant to RPV. However, it did not prevent transmission of Y181V HIV-1, which has 30-fold RPV resistance in the viruses used for this study. RPV LA did delay WT HIV-1 dissemination in infected animals until genital and plasma RPV concentrations waned. Animals that became infected despite RPV LA PrEP did not acquire new RPV-resistant mutations above frequencies in untreated mice or untreated people living with HIV-1, and the mutations detected conferred low-level resistance. These data suggest that high, sustained concentrations of RPV were required to inhibit vaginal transmission of HIV-1 with little or no resistance to RPV but could not inhibit virus with high resistance. HIV-1 did not develop high-level or high-frequency RPV resistance in the majority of mice infected after RPV LA treatment. However, the impact of low-frequency RPV resistance on virologic outcome during subsequent antiretroviral therapy still is unclear.IMPORTANCE The antiretroviral drug rilpivirine was developed into a long-acting formulation (RPV LA) to improve adherence for preexposure prophylaxis (PrEP) to prevent HIV-1 transmission. A concern is that RPV LA will not inhibit transmission of drug-resistant HIV-1 and may select for drug-resistant virus. In female humanized mice, we found that RPV LA inhibited vaginal transmission of WT or 3-fold RPV-resistant HIV-1 but not virus with 30-fold RPV resistance. In animals that became infected despite RPV LA PrEP, WT HIV-1 dissemination was delayed until genital and plasma RPV concentrations waned. RPV resistance was detected at similar low frequencies in untreated and PrEP-treated mice that became infected. These results indicate the importance of maintaining RPV at a sustained threshold after virus exposure to prevent dissemination of HIV-1 after vaginal infection and low-frequency resistance mutations conferred low-level resistance, suggesting that RPV resistance is difficult to develop after HIV-1 infection during RPV LA PrEP.

Keywords: HIV-1; NNRTI; PrEP; animal model; drug resistance; humanized mice; preexposure prophylaxis; rilpivirine; vaginal transmission.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Anti-HIV Agents / pharmacology*
  • Disease Models, Animal
  • Drug Resistance, Viral / drug effects
  • Female
  • HIV Infections / drug therapy
  • HIV Infections / prevention & control*
  • HIV Infections / transmission*
  • HIV-1 / drug effects*
  • HIV-1 / genetics
  • Mice
  • Mutation
  • Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis / methods*
  • Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors / pharmacology
  • Rilpivirine / pharmacology*
  • Vagina / virology*
  • Virus Replication / drug effects
  • gag Gene Products, Human Immunodeficiency Virus / genetics

Substances

  • Anti-HIV Agents
  • Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors
  • gag Gene Products, Human Immunodeficiency Virus
  • Rilpivirine