Statements in which the resource exists as a subject.
PredicateObject
rdf:type
lifeskim:mentions
pubmed:issue
1
pubmed:dateCreated
2005-3-21
pubmed:abstractText
The potential use of smallpox virus as a bioterror agent and the endemic presence of monkeypox virus in Africa underscores the need for better therapies for orthopoxvirus infections. The only existing clinical experience treating vaccinia and smallpox infections has been with Marboran, which suggested that antiviral therapies could be effective in treating and preventing smallpox infections, but this compound has not been pursued. Drugs that have been approved for other indications, like cidofovir, could be approved for the treatment of orthopoxvirus infections in a timely manner, and this compound has already been approved for emergency treatment of smallpox and complications from vaccination. Its lack of activity when given orally, however, limits its use in a major outbreak involving large numbers of people exposed to the virus. The discovery and development of new therapies can be achieved more rapidly by drawing on the experience and successes with other antiviral agents, particularly with the herpesviruses. This review will discuss the orthopoxvirus replication cycle in detail noting specific viral functions and their associated gene products that have the potential to serve as new targets for drug design and development. This discussion is designed to help investigators relate these targets to parallel functions and existing assays in other virus systems that have been used successfully in drug development. The rapid progress that has been achieved in recent years should yield new drugs for the treatment of these infections and might also reveal new strategies for antiviral therapy with other viruses.
pubmed:grant
pubmed:language
eng
pubmed:journal
pubmed:citationSubset
IM
pubmed:chemical
pubmed:status
MEDLINE
pubmed:month
Mar
pubmed:issn
1568-0053
pubmed:author
pubmed:issnType
Print
pubmed:volume
5
pubmed:owner
NLM
pubmed:authorsComplete
Y
pubmed:pagination
17-28
pubmed:dateRevised
2009-1-28
pubmed:meshHeading
pubmed:year
2005
pubmed:articleTitle
Orthopoxvirus targets for the development of antiviral therapies.
pubmed:affiliation
University of Alabama School of Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, 1600 6th Avenue South, Birmingham, AL 35233, USA.
pubmed:publicationType
Journal Article, Review