Comparison of Specific Antiviral Agents in Herpes Simplex Keratitis

¹ Division of Ophthalmology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Fla.

Several compounds loere studied for possible therapeutic activity in experimental herpes simplex keratitis. Of the 5-halogenated 2'-deoxyuridines the iodo and bromo were active and their activity teas antagonized by thymidine. The chloro was less effective and the fluoro was not active. Iodo- and fluorouracil and 5-aminouracil mustard were also inactive. These results are in agreement with the hypothesis that a requisite for antiviral activity is the ability to block the final step of nucleotide incorporation into DNA. Blockade of more preliminary steps is not sufficient. The incorporation of drug into fraudident DNA may also be important for antiviral activity. The final assembly of nucleic acids into DNA is the one step that must be virus specific and it may be here that therapeutically active antivirals must act.