Chapter 4 Picornavirus infections

The oldest member of the Picornaviruses group is polio virus, which was recognized early by clinicians because of its characteristic paralytic disease. This chapter examines the polio virus in regard to its virology, disease, and prevention by vaccines and chemoprophylaxis. Polio has been well controlled in most developed countries using live or inactivated vaccines. Research work has intensified using genetic engineering techniques to produce live attenuated viruses with defined and stable mutations so as to prevent reversion to virulence, and also to produce immunogenic oligopeptides or proteins for a new generation of inactivated polio vaccines. Chemotherapy is therefore not required for polio infections. In contrast, neither vaccines have been developed against rhinovirus infections, nor are the vaccines thought to have a use, unless broadly reacting antigenic determinants can be located. Several interesting but only weakly effective antiviral compounds have been selected against rhinoviruses and this is a major research area at present. Studies continue also with interferon, but because of toxicity problems these look less interesting at present. Sequence and biochemical data is now available for several additional enterovirus strains and this could open new possibilities both with antivirals or vaccines (for example synthetic peptides) in the near future.