Amantadine and rimantadine were early antiviral successes targeting the matrix-2 protein. Zanamivir Relenza and oseltamivir Tamiflu are newer drugs that have also had success in treating patients infected with influenza A or B.
They work by blocking a key viral enzyme, obstructing virus release from the cell, slowing the spread of infection within the body, and minimising the damage the infection causes.
If researchers can identify unique elements in how it survives and replicates, we can exploit these points of weakness and make an effective antiviral treatment. Explore further. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. Use this form if you have come across a typo, inaccuracy or would like to send an edit request for the content on this page. For general inquiries, please use our contact form.
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By using our site, you acknowledge that you have read and understand our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. Share 3 Share Email. Home Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes. May 8, Credit: www. Another complication is that different viruses vary from each other much more than different bacteria do. Bacteria all have double-stranded DNA genomes and replicate independently by growing larger and then splitting into two, similar to human cells. But there is extreme diversity between different viruses.
This makes it practically impossible to create a broad spectrum antiviral drug that will work across different virus types. Nevertheless, points of difference between humans and viruses do exist, and their exploitation has led to some success. One example is influenza A, which is one form of the flu.
Influenza A tricks human cells so it can enter them. A viral protein called matrix-2 protein is key to this process, facilitating a series of events that releases the viral RNA from the virus particle. Once the viral RNA is released inside the host cell, it is transported to the cell nucleus to start viral replication. So, the infection stalls.
Amantadine and rimantadine were early antiviral successes targeting the matrix-2 protein. One kind, strep throat, diagnosed by a lab test, needs antibiotics. Common viral infections, like coughs or a cold, can sometimes become complicated and a bacterial infection can develop.
However, treating viral infections with antibiotics in order to prevent bacterial infections is not recommended because of the risk of causing bacterial resistance:. Remember that antibiotics do not work against viral colds and the flu, and that unnecessary antibiotics can be harmful.
Talk with your healthcare provider about antibiotics and find out about the differences between viruses and bacteria, and when antibiotics should and should not be used. If your child receives an antibiotic, be sure to give it exactly as prescribed to decrease the development of resistant bacteria. Have your child finish the entire prescription. Don't stop when the symptoms of infection go away.
Never save the left over antibiotics to use "just in case. Do not share your antibiotics with someone else or take an antibiotic that was prescribed for someone else. Remember that taking antibiotics appropriately and making sure your child receives the proper immunizations will help prevent having to take more dangerous and more costly medicines. Full coverage of the coronavirus outbreak.
Antibiotics, which are used to fight bacterial infections, attack the bacteria's cell walls, block protein production and stop bacteria from reproducing.
But they aren't effective against viral infections, because viruses don't carry out any of those processes on their own. Rather, viruses need to invade and take over host cells to replicate. But a virus can't break into just any cell in the body. Instead, one of its proteins will bind to another protein — akin to a key fitting into a lock — which then allows the virus to hijack certain cells.
With this outbreak, the coronavirus' so-called spike protein primarily fits "locks" that are present on lung cells, which is why COVID, the disease it causes, is mainly a respiratory illness. Once the invasion takes place, the cell in essence is transformed into a factory that churns out hundreds and hundreds of copies of the virus, based on instructions encoded in its genetic material — RNA, or ribonucleic acid, in the case of the coronavirus.
The human body has evolved defense systems to protect against these kinds of infections. First, cells have a built-in alarm system to detect viral invaders. The presence of an intruder triggers what's known as an innate immune response, which can involve the host cell releasing a protein that tries to interfere with the virus' replication or can involve the immune system trying to shut down the compromised cells.
The work of these reinforcements to try to defeat the virus is typically what causes the symptoms of a viral infection — in other words, it's at this point when a person may come down with a fever and start to feel sick.
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