Antisense oligonucleotide ISIS 2922 targets IE-expression and prevents HCMV-IE-induced suppression of TSP-1 and TSP-2 expression.

ISIS 2922, but not ganciclovir (GCV), inhibits HCMV immediate early protein (IE) expression in different infected cell lines and prevents down-modulation of extracellular matrix proteins thrombospondin-1 and -2 induced by IE proteins. While action of ISIS 2922 is mainly due to specific inhibition of IE 2 mRNA, there is also evidence for unspecific effects in terms of inhibition of virus adhesion and penetration.