Resistance of cytomegalovirus (CMV) to antiviral agents is a well-recognized phenomenon that has been observed in the laboratory and in the clinical setting. Infections caused by antiviral-resistant CMV have been found exclusively among immunocompromised individuals, including patients with AIDS, bone marrow and solid-organ transplant recipients, and patients with hematologic malignancies, and ...

Influenza vaccination with current inactivated vaccines homologous to the prevalent wild-type virus can reduce influenza illness in 75%-80% of healthy adults. Vaccine is recommended for all individuals with chronic underlying diseases and for those aged 65 years or older. Although influenza vaccination is still advocated for patients with blunted immunity, protection rates are not as high, runn...

PURPOSE To describe a case of progressive outer retinal necrosis syndrome, successfully treated with a new combination of antiviral drugs. METHODS The patient was treated with a combined therapy of antiviral drugs that includes: intravenous acyclovir 10 mg/kg, three intravitreal injections of foscarnet (1200 microg) and a ganciclovir implant in the right eye. RESULTS The progressive outer r...

Smallpox (variola major), and the haemorrhagic fever viruses (filoviruses and arenaviruses) are classified as Category A biowarfare agents by the Centers for Disease Control. Category A agents pose a significant risk to public health and national security because they can be easily disseminated by aerosol, although with the exception of variola, they are not easily transmitted from person to pe...

Tom Jefferson can recite the details of every published study on the neuraminidase inhibitors oseltamivir (Tamiflu) and zanamivir (Relenza): date of publication, authors’ names, journal title, research question, methods, funder, and findings. But what has occupied the mind of the physician-academic from Cochrane’s Acute Respiratory Infections Group for the better part of five years is another d...

DC-SIGN, a C-type lectin expressed by dendritic cells, is able to recognize high mannosylated glycoproteins at the surface of a broad range of pathogens including viruses, bacteria, fungi and parasites. For at least some of these agents this interaction appears to be an important part of the infection process. Therefore, this lectin might be considered in the design of new antiviral drugs. In t...

Objective: In recent years, antiviral drugs have been used widely in the glob to prevent and treat viral diseases. They injected into eggs to eliminate pathogens and prevent of egg transmission of disease, but the adverse effects of drugs have always been a major concern. There is little information available about the safety of antiviral drugs in the embryonated eggs of birds. The objective of...

Objective: In recent years, antiviral drugs have been used widely in the glob to prevent and treat viral diseases. They injected into eggs to eliminate pathogens and prevent of egg transmission of disease, but the adverse effects of drugs have always been a major concern. There is little information available about the safety of antiviral drugs in the embryonated eggs of birds. The objective of...

Infection with cytomegalovirus is prevalent in immunosuppressed patients. In solid organ transplant and hematopoietic stem cell transplant recipients, cytomegalovirus infection is associated with high morbidity and preventable mortality. Prevention and treatment of cytomegalovirus with currently approved antiviral drugs is often associated with side effects that sometimes preclude their use. Mo...

Since the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) was discovered as the etiological agent of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), it has encouraged much research into antiviral compounds. The reverse transcriptase (RT) of HIV has been a main target for antiviral drugs. However, all drugs developed so far inhibit the polymerase function of the enzyme, while none of the approved antiviral agents...