Hi Brian, John, Keith. What are fusion-inhibitors, zincvingers-inhibitors and integrase-inhibitors? At a Dutch site I read those hiv-meds will come and will be a great step forwards to cure hiv-infection. How far or how close are scientists to solve the problem of hiv in anatomical and cellular reservoirs? Thank you for an answer.

The medication classes you mention are in varying stages of development. The fusion inhibitors, which include T-20 and T-1249, block viral entry into the cell by interfering with GP41-related fusion. T-20 is in phase III trials, T-1249 in Phase I. Zinc fingers (which target the HIV nucleocapsid protein zinc fingers and have been around a long time without going anywhere) and integrase inhibitors (which block the integrase enzyme) are in early stages of development. T-20 and T-1249 appear to be an important advance in HIV therapy, especially since they are an entirely new class, but it is too early to comment on the potential of zinc fingers or integrase inhibitors.