New Therapeutic Agents in Development for Patients With Herpesviruses
A new study shows that while most available treatments to attack herpesviruses are ineffective, a new treatment that targets two metal ion-dependent enzymes of herpesviruses, known as AK-157 and AK-166, may provide the promise of stopping replication of the virus, particularly for vulnerable populations.
The study, published in an open access journal of the American Society for Microbiology, finds that there are families of nine different herpesviruses that can cause issues for those who are infected and immunocompromised, such as an individual seeking an organ transplant or a chemotherapy patient.
“We need better therapeutic agents that can be used in these very vulnerable populations. Right now, the therapeutic agents that are out there aren’t terribly effective in terms of being able to treat all the viruses, and many of them have significant dose-limiting toxicities and associated side effects,” said the co-author of the study, Dennis Wright, a professor of medicinal chemistry at the School of Pharmacy at the University of Connecticut, in a press release.
According to Wright, the study shows the potential to create one drug that could inhibit the reactivation of all nine of the herpesviruses.
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