Enanta has discovered two novel protease inhibitors for use against the hepatitis C virus (HCV). Through Enanta’s collaboration with AbbVie, the protease inhibitors glecaprevir and paritaprevir have been approved in fixed-dose combinations with other direct-acting antivirals for the treatment of HCV.
AbbVie is responsible for all worldwide marketing and sales of the collaboration’s HCV treatment regimens, which now consist primarily of MAVYRET®/MAVIRET® (glecaprevir/pibrentasvir).
GLECAPREVIR, AN HCV PROTEASE INHIBITOR discovered by enanta
Glecaprevir was discovered by Enanta and designed to enable once-daily dosing without ritonavir or ribavirin. It is now part of AbbVie’s leading HCV regimen, a fixed-dose oral drug treatment marketed under the brand names MAVYRET® (U.S.) and MAVIRET® (ex-U.S.) (glecaprevir/pibrentasvir). In most patients MAVYRET/MAVIRET requires only eight weeks of treatment. For more information on MAVYRET visit here: https://www.mavyret.com/
PARITAPREVIR, THE Initial PROTEASE INHIBITOR in ABBVIE’s HCV Regimens
Paritaprevir is the NS3/4A protease inhibitor developed through the collaboration between Enanta and AbbVie and constitutes one of the direct-acting-antivirals in VIEKIRA PAK®, AbbVie’s initial HCV regimen for HCV genotypes 1 and 4. VIEKIRA PAK remains on the market in the few territories where MAVIRET is not approved.
About HCV
Hepatitis C is a liver disease caused by the hepatitis C virus (HCV). For some people, hepatitis C is a short-term illness, but for 70%–85% of people who become infected with the virus it becomes a long-term, chronic infection. Many people might not be aware of their infection because they are not clinically ill. According to a recent study, an estimated 2.4 million people in the United States are living with HCV infection. Globally, according to the World Health Organization, approximately 71 million people have chronic HCV infection. Currently, there is no vaccine for HCV.
In April 2020, the Centers for Disease Control issued new recommendations calling for universal HCV screening for adults. According to the CDC, all individuals 18 and older should be tested for the infection at least once in their lifetime and pregnant women should be tested once during each pregnancy.