By Bunmi Yekini
Efforts to improve the taste of lifesaving HIV medication for infants and children are showing promise, thanks to groundbreaking research conducted by scientists from the University of Strathclyde in Scotland and the University of the Western Cape in South Africa.
The team has developed a novel method using co-crystallisation to reduce the bitterness of antiretroviral drugs, which are essential in treating HIV but are often rejected by children due to their unpleasant taste.
In 2023, around 100,000 children under the age of 14 in sub-Saharan Africa were HIV-positive, according to UNAIDS. While antiretroviral therapy can save lives, ensuring adherence is a significant challenge. The newly developed method may be a game-changer in pediatric HIV treatment.
Professor Katharina Edkins from the University of Strathclyde emphasized the importance of this innovation:
“Taste plays a significant role in the development of pharmaceutical formulations, especially for paediatric and geriatric patients, as it directly affects whether patients stick to their treatment. The preventative medication used for HIV tastes awful for children, and given they have to take this every day for the rest of their lives, it’s vital to ensure it’s palatable. If they don’t take it, they will develop AIDS and die.”
Unlike traditional approaches that rely on sweeteners and flavoring agents, the researchers used co-crystallisation, a process where molecules combine to create a new crystalline structure. This method targets the bitterness at a molecular level rather than just masking it with sweetness.
Professor Edkins explained:
“The key factor isn’t the actual sweetness of the ingredients, but rather the interaction between the drug and co-former in solution. The stronger that interaction, the better the bitter taste is altered.”
The study tested nevirapine (NVP), a common antiretroviral drug, using an electrical tasting system to evaluate the bitterness. Results showed that co-crystallisation significantly reduced the drug’s bitterness, making it more tolerable for children.
Professor Marique Aucamp from the University of the Western Cape highlighted the broader implications of the findings:
“This is a ‘focus-shifter’ in pharmaceutical formulation. Typically, we would add a sweetener to improve the taste of children’s medication, but our study opened a whole new area for taste alteration of any medicine for any patient group.”
The project, funded by the Royal Society through its Future Leader in African Independent Research (FLAIR) grants, could pave the way for similar innovations in drugs for tuberculosis and other conditions. The next phase aims to expand the research to include other antiretroviral drugs and involve human taste panels.