Virology, Emerging Diseases & vaccines

Antiviral Drug Discovery and Development

Viruses are intracellular pathogens that have evolved many devious strategies to evade host immune responses and, as a consequence, have plagued human health throughout history. Combating viral diseases with vaccines or antiviral drugs, or both, is a constant challenge. Even when successful strategies are discovered and employed, the high rate of genetic change exhibited by many viruses, particularly RNA viruses, often enables drug resistance or vaccine escape. This is compounded by the periodic emergence of new viral pathogens.