Biology / Unit 9 Bio 1935 short lesson, about 20 seconds
Antiviral Drug Mechanism
Captions available
The idea
An antiviral drug blocks a viral protein's function, without targeting proteins the host cell's healthy metabolism depends on.
In practice
Tamiflu inhibits the influenza enzyme neuraminidase, blocking new virions from detaching and spreading to uninfected cells.
Where people slip
An antiviral drug's specificity to viral-only proteins is what limits its side effects— a drug hitting host proteins too would harm the patient.
Your place on the trail
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