Abacavir

(CC) Image: David E. Volk Abacavir, an antiviral drug, is a nucleotide analog.
abacavir
IUPAC name: see chemistry section Synonyms: ABC Formula: C14H18N6O
Uses:	HIV
Properties:	reverse transcriptase inhibitor
Hazards:	see drug interactions
Mass (g/mol): CAS #: 286.3323 136470-78-5

Abacavir, abbreviated ABC, is a nucleoside analog reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NRTI) used to treat HIV/AIDS. It becomes phosphorylated by cellular enzymes into an active metabolite, caravir triphosphate, which is an analog of deoxyguanosine-5'-triphosphate (dGTP). Caravir triphosphate gets incorporated into viral DNA where it acts as a chain terminator because it does not contain a 3'-hydroxy group needed to link with the next DNA base. It also inhibits HIV-1 transcriptase by binding to the enzyme so that the natural base, dGTP, cannot bind. Because the drugs' metabolism involves the enzyme alcohol dehydrogenase, use of alcohol with this drug should be avoided.

Chemistry

The IUPAC chemical name of abacavir is [(1R)-4-[2-amino-6-(cyclopropylamino)purin-9-yl]-1-cyclopent-2-enyl]methanol, and is has chemical formula C₁₄H₁₈N₆O, giving it a molecular mass of 286.3323 g/mol. It is a purine analog.

External Links

The most up-to-date information about Abacavir and other drugs can be found at the following sites.

• Abacavir - FDA approved drug information (drug label) from DailyMed (U.S. National Library of Medicine).
• Abacavir - Drug information for consumers from MedlinePlus (U.S. National Library of Medicine).
• Abacavir - Detailed information from DrugBank.