EFFECTS OF DIMETHYL PROSTAGLANDIN-A1 ON HERPES-SIMPLEX VIRUS AND HUMAN-IMMUNODEFICIENCY-VIRUS REPLICATION

We have investigated the direct effect of dimethyl prostaglandin A1 (dmPGA1) on the replication of herpes simplex virus (HSV) and human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1). dmPGA1 significantly inhibited viral replication in both HSV and HIV infection systems at concentrations of dmPGA1, that did not adversely alter cellular DNA synthesis. The 50% inhibitory concentration (ID50) for several HSV type 1 (HSV-1) strains ranged from 3.8 to 5.6 mug/ml for Vero cells and from 4.6 to 7.3 mug/ml for human foreskin fibroblasts. The ID50s for two HSV-2 strains varied from 3.8 to 4.5 mug/ml for Vero cells; the ID50 was 5.7 mug/ml for human foreskin fibroblasts. We found that closely related prostaglandins did not have the same effect on the replication of HSV; dmPGE2 and dmPGA2 caused up to a 60% increase in HSV replication compared with that in untreated virus-infected cells. HIV-1 replication in acutely infected T cells (VB line) and chronically infected macrophages was assessed by quantitative decreases in p24 concentration. The effective ID50s were 2.5 mug/ml for VB cells acutely infected with HIV-1 and 5.2 mug/m for chronically infected macrophages. dmPGA1 has an unusual broad-spectrum antiviral activity against both HSV and HIV-1 in vitro and offers a new class of potential therapeutic agents for in vivo use.