1988 Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine

The work of the three Nobel laureates is examined. Their development of highly successful drugs was influenced by a keen understanding of basic biochemical processes and of the concept of selec-tivity. In addition to presenting brief biographical sketches of the laureates, the essay considers their most-cited papers and examines how this work has been reflected in ISl ” research fronts

Effect of Acycloguanosine Treatment on Acute and Latent Herpes Simplex Infections in Mice

Systemic treatment of mice with the nucleoside analog 9-(2-hydroxyethoxymethyl)guanine (acycloguanosine [aciclovir]) was found to be highly effective against acute type 1 herpes simplex virus infection of the pinna. The drug ablated clinical signs and reduced virus replication both in tissue local to the inoculation site and within the nervous system. Provided that moderate-sized virus inocula were used, acycloguanosine treatment reduced or prevented the establishment of a latent infection in the dorsal root ganglia relating to the sensory nerve supply of the ear. However, although it aborted artificially produced infections in dorsal root ganglia, acycloguanosine was found not to be effective against the latent infection once established. This finding strongly indicated that latent herpes simplex virus in mice can exist in a nonreplicating form