Novel Antiviral Therapy for RSV Infection

There is no proven antiviral therapy available for the treatment of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection — a condition that carries significant morbidity and mortality risks in susceptible groups, including young infants, the elderly, and immunocompromised individuals.

In a recent manufacturer-funded, double-blind, placebo-controlled challenge study, researchers sought to establish proof of concept for a novel oral agent, GS-5806, that interferes with RSV entry by blocking viral-envelope fusion with the host-cell membrane. Healthy adults were inoculated intranasally with a clinical strain of RSV and then, when they tested positive for RSV infection (or on day 5, whichever came first), were randomized to receive GS-5806 (in one of vari…