Antiviral Drugs and Interferon: The Molecular Basis of Their Activity

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xv

   PDF

2. Introduction: Current Trends In The Research on Antiviral Drugs

   1. Introduction: Current Trends in the Research on Antiviral Drugs

      • Y. Becker

      Pages 1-9

3. Antiherpes Simplex Virus Drugs

   1. Antiviral Activity of Iodinated Pyrimidine Deoxyribonucleosides

      • Michael J. Otto, Barry Goz, William H. Prussof

      Pages 11-38

   2. Antiviral Properties of Aranucleosides: Metabolic Considerations

      • Thomas W. North

      Pages 39-57

   3. Herpes Simplex Virus Thymidine Kinase-Dependent Antiviral Agents

      • Yung-Chi Cheng

      Pages 59-70

   4. Acyclovir

      • Gertrude B. Elion

      Pages 71-88

   5. BVDU ((E)-5-(2-Bromovinyl)-2’-Deoxyuridine)

      • Erik De Clercq

      Pages 89-104

   6. 2’-Fluoro-5-Iodo-l-β-D-Arabinofuranosylcytosine [FIAC]: Synthesis and Mode of Anti-Herpesvirus Activity

      • Carlos Lopez, Ting-Chao Chou, Kyoichi A. Watanabe, Jack J. Fox

      Pages 105-115

   7. Herpesvirus-Specified DNA Polymerase as the Target for Developing Selective ANTIHERPESVIRUS AGENTS

      • Yung-Chi Cheng, David Derse, Karl Frank, Ken Bastow

      Pages 117-126

   8. Phosphonoformate and Phosphonoacetate

      • B. Eriksson, B. Öberg

      Pages 127-142

   9. Distamycin and Derivatives: The Pyrrole Amidine Antiviral Antibiotics

      • Meir Bialer

      Pages 143-156

   10. Clinical Insights into the Metabolism of Arabinosyl Adenine and Interferon as Derived by Microbiological Assays

       • A. Martin Lerner

       Pages 157-172

4. Drugs Inhibitory to Viral Reverse Transcriptase

   1. Modulation of Retrovirus DNA Polymerase Activity by Polynucleotides and their Analogs

      • P. Chandra, I. Demirhan, U. Ebener, B. Kornhuber, D. Gericke

      Pages 173-189

5. Antipoxvirus Drug

   1. The Antipoxvirus Activity of Isatin-β-Thiosemicarbazone (IBT)

      • Ehud Katz

      Pages 191-202

6. Drugs Affecting Synthesis or Processing of mRNA

   1. Halogenated Ribofuranosylbenzimidazoles

      • Igor Tamm, Pravinkumar B. Sehgal, Robert A. Lamb, Allan R. Goldberg

      Pages 203-252

   2. Ribavirin

      • Roberts A. Smith, Peter Canonico

      Pages 253-269

7. Drugs Affecting RNA Viruses

   1. Molecular Basis of Guanidine Action

      • M. Schrom, L. A. Caliguiri

      Pages 271-283

   2. Mechanism of Action of 2-(α-Hydroxybenzyl)-Benzimidazole (HBB)

      • Hans J. Eggers

      Pages 285-300

   3. Multiple Actions of Amantadine Against Influenza Viruses

      • Alan J. Hay, Mary C. Zambon

      Pages 301-315

8. Interferon

   1. Polynucleotide inducers of Interferon: Studies with Poly(G)·Poly(C)

      • P. F. Torrence, E. De Clercq

      Pages 317-333

Research on antiviral drugs and their mode of action in infected cells. in animals and in man. has led to a better understanding of the molecular pro­ cesses involved in virus replication. Screeninq of large numbers of natural and semisynthetic compounds resulted in the characterization of certain sub­ stances that had a limited efficiency as antiviral druqs. A few chemically synthesized compounds were also found to be effective as antiviral agents in the chemotherapy of human virus diseases. A major difficulty in the develop­ ment of effective antiviral agents has been the lack of selectivity. and toxicity for uninfected cells. of drugs that effectively inhibited virus replication in vitro. Further understanding of the molecular processes of virus replication in infected cells has resulted in the development of new antivirals directed at virus-coded enzymes or proteins. Recent studies on antivirals that are activated by the herpes simplex virus type l-coded thy­ midine kinase from a prod rug to an antiviral drug have opened new directions in the development of effective antiviral drugs. The present book deals with a number of antiviral drugs effective against herpes simplex viruses and provides some insight into the molecular aspects of virus replication. It also throws light on the new approaches to the development of antiviral drugs. The molecular basis of the antiviral activity of new and known drugs and their possible use in chemotherapy of viral disease are presented in this book.

• animals
• antibiotic
• cells
• enzymes
• interferon
• metabolism
• molecular basis
• molecule
• polymer
• protein
• proteins
• synthesis
• therapy
• toxicity
• virus

• The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel

  Yechiel Becker

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