In vitro and in vivo antiviral activity of 1-beta-D-arabinofuranosyl-E-5-(2-bromovinyl)uracil (BV-araU) and related compounds.

BV-araU and related compounds such as CV-araU, IV-araU and BV-araUMP showed marked activity against herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) in human embryonic lung fibroblast cells. BV-araU, CV-araU and BV-araUMP were also effective in mice infected intracerebrally with HSV-1. Especially, when mice were infected with a low dose of virus, both intravenous and oral treatment with BV-araU proved capable of increasing the mean survival time and decreasing the final mortality of the infected mice. The in vivo anti-HSV-1 activity of BV-araU was comparable to that of BVDU. BV-araU exhibited little toxicity for mice.