Efficacy of 9-beta-D-arabinofuranosylhypoxanthine 5'-monophosphate in therapy of equine abortion virus-induced hepatitis in hamsters.

Equine abortion virus (EAV)-induced hepatitis in hamsters presents an interesting animal model for the evaluation of drugs possessing anti-deoxyribonucleic acid virus activity. These experiments demonstrate that 9-beta-d-arabinofuranosylhypoxanthine 5'-monophosphate (ara-HxMP), a new synthetic, water-soluble, antiviral agent, effectively controls this disease in hamsters with a therapeutic index of approximately 60. Ara-HxMP prevented hepatitis-associated deaths in hamsters, reduced the titer of EAV developing in hamsters, and inhibited the increase of serum glutamic pyruvic transaminase in EAV-infected hamsters.