[In vitro effectiveness of new antiviral substances. 1. Results of screening studies against selected picornaviruses].

A number of 3108 new synthetic compounds were subjected to a screening for antiviral activity. The screening resulted in the selection of numerous drugs active against mengovirus in vitro. Some drugs were also active against Coxsackie viruses A9 and B1; most of the drugs efficient against Coxsackie virus A9 also showed activity against mengovirus. Quantitative investigations--such as the determination of a therapeutic index or of the inhibition of infectious virus yields in one-step growth cycle experiments--allowed the selection of the compounds with the highest in vitro efficacy.