Comparative therapeutic efficacy of recombinant interferons-alpha, -beta, and -gamma against alphatogavirus, bunyavirus, flavivirus, and herpesvirus infections.

Recombinant (r) preparations of interferons (IFN)-alpha, -beta, and -gamma were shown to protect mice against experimental virus infections with herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2), and with three RNA-containing viruses from different families: Banzi, a flavivirus; Semliki Forest virus (SFV), an alphatogavirus; and Caraparu, a bunyavirus. The antiviral effects of the three different types of IFN were different with each virus. HSV-2 was the most sensitive virus, followed by SFV. Against Banzi virus, IFN-gamma was only effective when given both before and after infection. Against Caraparu virus, only IFN-gamma had a significant effect. These results suggest that IFN therapy might be valuable in human infections with these viruses, but that the correct choice of IFN and dose regimen is likely to be important.