Chapter 26 – Antiviral Therapy

Once a virus infection is established, antiviral therapy is the option for the control of the viral infection. In principle, all the steps in the virus life cycle ranging from entry to release can be explored as molecular targets for antiviral therapy. In fact, the vast majority of antiviral drugs developed since the 1980s are anti-HIV drugs. These anti-HIV drugs block diverse steps of the HIV life cycle, including entry, reverse transcription, viral protein processing, and integration. Here, we will learn about a wave of newly identified drug targets and new drugs focusing on HBV, HCV, and influenza virus as well as HIV. In addition to small molecules, antibodies are used for antiviral therapy as well, under certain circumstances.