Ribavirin, also known as Copegus, Rebetol, Virazole, or a component of Rebetron, is a type of antiviral medicine called a nucleoside analogue. This medicine blocks the ability of the hepatitis C virus (HCV) to make more copies of itself. Ribavirin is not active against HIV. Ribavirin is used in combination with interferon alfa-2a or -2b or peginterferon alfa-2a or -2b to treat HIV infected patients who are also infected with HCV.
A new study by researchers from the University of Kent and the Goethe University Frankfurt shows that the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant is less effective than Delta at blocking a cellular defense mechanism against viruses, the so-called “interferon response”.
Endemic in Western African countries, Lassa virus is transmitted to humans through food or household items that are contaminated with the urine or faeces of Mastomys rats.
When the Covid-19 pandemic struck in early 2020, doctors and researchers rushed to find effective treatments.
A paper recently uploaded to bioRxiv* aimed to utilize genome-wide CRISPR screening to identify genes involved in modulating the activity of COVID-19 drugs.