The susceptibility of human herpes simplex virus (HSV) to acyclovir (ACV) was determined with the use of a single dose of the drug (1 and 2 micrograms of ACV per ml for HSV-1 and HSV-2, respectively) in two rapid assays: a rapid cytopathic effect inhibitory assay (Rapid CIA) and a rapid dye uptake assay (Rapid DUA). These tests allow the simultaneous determination of virus titer and susceptibil...

The emergence of varicella-zoster virus (VZV) resistance to current antivirals as acyclovir (ACV) constitutes a hindrance to antiviral treatment effectiveness of VZV infections, especially in immunocompromised patients. The molecular mechanisms of VZV resistance reported so far rely on the presence of mutations within thymidine kinase (TK, ORF36) and DNA polymerase (ORF28) viral genes. The aim ...

Although many drugs inhibit the replication of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) in cell culture systems, there is still no drug that is effective and approved for use in primary EBV infection. More recently, maribavir (MBV), an l-ribofuranoside benzimidazole, has been shown to be a potent and nontoxic inhibitor of EBV replication and to have a mode of action quite distinct from that of acyclic nucleosi...

Organic anion transporter 1 (OAT1) is a p-aminohippurate/dicarboxylate exchanger that plays a primary role in the tubular secretion of endogenous and exogenous organic anions. OAT1 is located in the basolateral membrane of the proximal tubular cells and mediates the uptake of various organic anions from the peritubular fluid. In this study, we investigated the transport of antiviral nucleoside ...

PURPOSE To evaluate the efficacy of photodynamic antimicrobial chemotherapy (PACT) with the new porphyrin derivative TONS 504 and a light-emitting diode (LED) against acyclovir (ACV)-sensitive and -resistant herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1). METHODS Human FL cells infected with the viral strains were subjected to PACT with TONS 504 at various concentrations (0.01 to 10 mg/l) and irradiatio...

Mutations in the thymidine kinase (TK) gene of herpes simplex virus (HSV) may confer resistance to acyclovir (ACV). Because of the high genetic polymorphism of this gene, discriminating between mutations related to resistance and mutations related to gene polymorphism can be difficult, especially when no sensitive strain has been previously isolated from the same patient. To assess the role of ...

Osteocalcin (OC), a noncollagenous bone matrix protein, is expressed in high levels by osteoblasts. To determine whether the OC promoter mediates cell-specific gene expression in cells of osteoblast lineage, we constructed a recombinant adenovirus, Ad-OC-TK, which contains the OC promoter that drives the expression of herpes simplex virus thymidine kinase (TK). We tested the expression of TK by...

BACKGROUND In patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection, genital herpetic lesions may be extensive and tend to persist for longer periods; in addition, atypical hypertrophic, ulcerative, or pseudotumor forms have been reported, frequently showing resistance to acyclovir (ACV) treatment. METHODS Between 2003 and 2011, 10 HIV-1-infected patients presenting with chronic pseudotu...

Globally, women bear an uneven burden for sexual HIV acquisition. Results from two clinical trials evaluating intravaginal rings (IVRs) delivering the antiretroviral agent dapivirine have shown that protection from HIV infection can be achieved with this modality, but high adherence is essential. Multipurpose prevention technologies (MPTs) can potentially increase product adherence by offering ...

The objective of this study was to design and develop o/w microemulsion for transdermal delivery of poorly water soluble acyclovir by aqueous titration method. Oleic acid: castor oil (3:1), tween 80, and ethanol were selected as oily phase, surfactant and cosurfactant respectively. The Pseudoternary phase diagrams were constructed by aqueous titration method. The cosurfactant affect the shape a...