The biological half-life is 41 hours for the tablets and 5.6 to 11.5 weeks for the injection.Elimination has only been studied for oral administration: Most of the drug is eliminated via the faeces in unchanged form (47%). It is not known how much of this amount comes from the bile, and how much was not absorbed in the first place. (The bile actually contains the glucuronide, but this could be broken up again in the gut lumen to give the parent substance that is observed in the faeces.) To a lesser extent it is excreted via the urine (27%), almost exclusively as the glucuronide. Pharmacogenomics
UGT1A1 poor metabolizers have 1.3- to 1.5-fold increased cabotegravir concentrations in the body. This is not considered clinically significant. Chemistry
Cabotegravir is a white to off-white, crystalline powder that is practically insoluble in aqueous solutions under pH 9, and slightly soluble above pH 10. It is slightly acidic with a pKa of 7.7 for the enolic acid and 1.1 (calculated) for the carboxamide. The molecule has two asymmetric carbon atoms; only one of the four possible configurations is present in the medication. Formulation
In studies, the agent was packaged into nanoparticles (GSK744LAP) conferring a biological half-life of 21 to 50 days following a single dose. The marketed injection achieves its long half-life not via nanoparticles but with a suspension of the free cabotegravir acid. The tablets contain cabotegravir sodium salt. History
Cabotegravir was examined in the clinical trials HPTN 083 and HPTN 084.
Cabotegravir, sold under the brand name Vocabria among others, is a antiretroviral medication used for the treatment of HIV/AIDS. It is available in the form of tablets and as an intramuscular injection, as well as in an injectable combination with rilpivirine under the brand name Cabenuva.It is an integrase inhibitor with a carbamoyl pyridone structure similar to that of dolutegravir.In December 2021, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved cabotegravir for pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) in at-risk people under the brand name Apretude. Medical uses
Cabotegravir in combination with rilpivirine is indicated for the treatment of human immunodeficiency virus type-1 (HIV-1) in adults. The combination injection is intended for maintenance treatment of adults who have undetectable HIV levels in the blood (viral load less than 50 copies/mL) with their current antiretroviral treatment, and when the virus has not developed resistance to non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NNRTIs) and integrase strand transfer inhibitors. The tablets are used to check whether a person tolerates the treatment before the injection therapy is started.The two medicines are the first antiretroviral drugs that come in a long-acting injectable formulation.Cabotegravir (Apretude) is indicated for use in at-risk people weighing at least 35 kilograms (77 lb) for pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) to reduce the risk of sexually acquired HIV. Contraindications and interactions
Cabotegravir must not be combined with the drugs rifampicin, rifapentine, carbamazepine, oxcarbazepine, phenytoin or phenobarbital, which induce the enzyme UGT1A1. These drugs significantly decrease cabotegravir concentrations in the body and thus may reduce its effectiveness.