Kathmandu. Wesley Sundquist, a scientist at the University of Utah, reached another significant milestone this week when his research led to the Food and Drug Administration approving an antiviral medication for HIV prophylaxis.

The groundwork for the creation of a potent, long-lasting prophylactic, or preventive measure, against HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, was established by Sundquist’s group at the U.

Developed by Gilead Sciences, a pharmaceutical business based in California, the resulting medication, lenacapavir, has been designated the “Breakthrough of the Year” by Science, a prestigious scientific journal.

With the FDA’s ruling, the medication, which is sold under the Yeztugo brand, will now be accessible in the United States, where 31,000 people contract HIV annually.

However, Sundquist’s research that produced the medication began in the late 1990s.

Sundquist’s team was able to determine the appearance and structure of the protein shell that encloses the virus’s genetic information by purifying and examining it.

The study team made a critical discovery: the virus’ shell is extremely susceptible to modifications. Drugs that modify the protein shell may be useful since even little changes to the proteins that make up the shell prevented the virus from replicating as quickly.

These revelations drew Gilead Sciences’ attention, which led the business to look for medications that target the capsid, or HIV protein shell. Sundquist served as a consultant for the company, which ultimately resulted in the creation of lenacapavir.

By binding to the HIV virus’s protein coat, the medication stops the virus from correctly and efficiently forming and entering the host cell’s nucleus.

“It’s stronger than any medication on the market, but more significantly, it lasts a very long time. For six months, it entirely shields people from transmission, according to Phase 3 clinical testing, Sundquist stated. “This has the potential to significantly alter the current trend of 1.3 million new infections globally. Right now, there’s little reason to doubt that this will have a significant influence, even though the deployment must be funded and accomplished.

Lenacapavir stands out from other HIV medications since it has the ability to completely prevent HIV.

The World Health Organisation reports that around 40 million individuals worldwide are infected with HIV, and the infection causes 600,000 fatalities per year.

Over 2,000 women who received a dosage of lenacapavir did not develop HIV during the course of the study in big clinical trials conducted in South Africa and Uganda, two HIV hotspots.

“Lenacapavir almost completely prevents the transmission of HIV into at-risk populations,” Sundquist stated. “This is just an amazing result.”

The FDA’s approval of the medication is just one more victory for Sundquist, who last week also received Harvard University’s 2025 Warren Alpert Prize. Time magazine named Sundquist one of the 100 most influential persons in the world in April.

“We view ourselves as sort of the feedstock for new ways of approaching medicine,” Sundquist stated. “Our desire to learn about things we don’t comprehend is what motivates us. And that’s not all that different from other types of explorers, in my opinion. I believe that the same motivation that propels humans to explore or ascend mountains also propels us to learn how a molecular machine functions.

Sundquist said the fight against HIV is far from ended, despite the recent victory.

“A vaccination is still required. “It would be even better because then you could vaccinate everyone, not just those who are at risk,” Sundquist stated. “That’s been a very difficult problem.”