Therapy of poxvirus infections

Poxviruses have been recognized for centuries as a threat for human health. The most dreadful representative of the family, Variola virus, responsible for smallpox, was eradicated last century, after a wide and intensive campaign of vaccination. Meanwhile, the importance of other poxviruses has been recognized in human pathology, as well as the possible use of microbial agents, including smallpox, by bioterrorists. Together with the development of safer vaccination approaches, the research on antivirals has already led to the discovery of several families of active therapeutic compounds. The increased understanding of the viral replication and pathogenicity, as well as improvements in pharmacokinetics has led to the development of new and promising classes of compounds. These new molecules are either prodrugs giving better bioavailability, or compounds interfering with new molecular targets, both viral and cellular. Over the last few years, these latter developments have opened new opportunities for the treatment of poxvirus infections, and are discussed in this chapter.