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National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences

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Publication Detail

Title: Viral error catastrophe by mutagenic nucleosides.

Authors: Anderson, Jon P; Daifuku, Richard; Loeb, Lawrence A

Published In Annu Rev Microbiol, (2004)

Abstract: Riboviruses and retroviruses have the highest rates of mutations of any known organism. Increasing the mutation rate of these viruses could exceed the error threshold for viability of a viral population within a host. Recent experiments with mutagenic nucleoside analogs validate this new approach to treating infection of RNA viruses. Lethal mutagenesis with HIV-infected cells in culture has been documented and has been postulated to be the mechanism for treatment of hepatitis C with ribavirin. We consider the viral dynamics involved in the formation of a quasispecies, the choice of mutagenic nucleoside analogs, and the studies that have demonstrated the feasibility of lethal mutagenesis.

PubMed ID: 15487935 Exiting the NIEHS site

MeSH Terms: Antiviral Agents/pharmacology; HIV Infections/drug therapy; HIV/genetics; HIV/metabolism; Hepacivirus/genetics; Hepatitis C/drug therapy; Humans; Models, Genetic; Mutagenesis/genetics*; Nucleosides/genetics*; Nucleosides/pharmacology; RNA Viruses/genetics*; Ribavirin/therapeutic use

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