• A class of drugs that help fight retrovirus infections; commonly prescribed to treat human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).
  Harvard Dictionary of Health Terms
  Harvard Medical Publishing, 2011
• A compound that interferes with the ability of certain enzymes to break down proteins. Some protease inhibitors can keep a virus from making copies of itself (for example, AIDS virus protease inhibitors), and some can prevent cancer cells from spreading.
  NCI Dictionary of Cancer Terms
  U.S. National Cancer Institute, 2021
• Any substance or agent which suppresses, prevents or opposes the actions or biosynthesis of proteases.
  CRISP Thesaurus
  National Institutes of Health, 2006
• Any substance that inhibits a protease, an enzyme that breaks peptide bonds. Proteases are required for many cell processes and inhibition of proteases can inhibit viral replication, inflammatory responses, proliferation, and tumor growth.
  NCI
  U.S. National Cancer Institute, 2021
• Compounds which inhibit or antagonize biosynthesis or actions of proteases (ENDOPEPTIDASES).
  NLM Medical Subject Headings
  U.S. National Library of Medicine, 2025
• Protease inhibitor, class of antiretroviral drugs used to treat HIV retrovirus infection in AIDS patients. Protease inhibitors are characterized by their ability to block activation of an HIV enzyme called protease. The protease enzyme is involved in the synthesis of new viral particles, which can...
  Encyclopedia Britannica
  Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc., 2025