March 4 (Reuters) - GSK said on Monday a new

formulation of its HIV prevention and treatment drug could

potentially be administered at least every four months, an

improvement from the previous requirement of dosing every two

months.

Data on the ultra-long-acting cabotegravir was presented at

the Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections by

GSK's HIV-focused unit, ViiV Healthcare, which plans to conduct

large-scale clinical trials later this year.

The drug is among a dozen significant product releases that

GSK anticipates in the coming years. The company has shifted its

HIV focus to long-acting treatments and prevention therapies,

amid a series of upcoming patent expiries and litigations.

"This new formulation of cabotegravir with a higher

concentration and at least double the half-life puts us on the

path toward delivering dosing every four months for HIV

treatment and PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis)," said Kimberly

Smith, head of Research and Development at ViiV, in a statement.

GSK is also targeting to bring the first ultra-long-acting

medicine for the prevention of HIV in 2026, followed by an

ultra-long-acting HIV treatment medicine in 2027.

Pfizer ( PFE ) and Shionogi ( SGIOF ) hold minority stakes in

GSK's ViiV Healthcare business.

Strong sales of medicines for HIV, the virus that causes

AIDS, drove GSK's growth last year, contributing about 21% of

total revenue.