Dimethyl Sulfoxide as a Vehicle for Topical Antiviral Chemotherapy
Abstract
To evaluate the importance of drug delivery experimentally, we have measured the penetration of acyclovir (ACV) through guinea pig skin in vitro from different drug vehicles and compared these findings with the efficacy of two topical formulations of the drug in the treatment of an experimental cutaneous herpes simplex virus infection. ACV is a potent new compound with striking in vitro activity against herpes simplex virus, a wide toxic/therapeutic ratio, and established clinical activity against cutaneous human HSV infection other than recurrent disease. The penetration of acyclovir through guinea pig skin in vitro was markedly greater with DMSO than when PEG was the vehicle. When 5% ACV in DMSO infection in the guinea pig, ACV/DMSO was more effective. The effectiveness of antivirals in DMSO in the guinea pig is likely related to drug penetration, and development of a means to enhance delivery of antivirals to the target cells would appear to be a potentially fruitful next step to further the effectiveness of topical anti-herpesvirus therapy in humans.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jun 01, 1983
- Accession Number
- ADP001827
Entities
People
- J. R. Cardinal
- M. B. Mckeough
- S. L. Spruance
Organizations
- University of Utah