Suppression of viral replication by guanidine: a comparison of human adenoviruses and enteroviruses.

A comparison was made between the relative sensitivities of laboratory strain human adenoviruses and enteroviruses, and recently isolated human enteroviruses, to the presence of guanidine hydrochloride in cell culture media. The concentration of guanidine hydrochloride used was 100 micrograms per ml. Representatives of all six human Adenovirus subgenera were unaffected in their replication at this concentration of guanidine. The different human Enterovirus types examined varied in their sensitivity, with suppression ranging from less than 1 to 3 log10 units for laboratory strains, and from 2 to 7 log10 units for recently isolated viruses. The findings suggest a novel role for antiviral drugs; serving as an adjunct in facilitating selective isolation of specific virus groups which may be present as part of mixed viral populations.