Anti-viral
Antivirals are a type of medicines applied particularly for treatment of viral infections. Similar to antibiotics, particular antivirals are applied for corresponding viruses. Antivirals belong to types of antimicribials, which is a wider group, containing antiparasitic, antifungal, and antibiotic medicines. These drugs bring a safe amount of harm to the patient, so they can be applied to cure infections. Antivirals are different from viricides that effectively neutralize virus molecules outside the organism.
The majority of antiviral drugs present nowadays are worked out to assist in treating HIV and herpes viruses, widely known as leading to genital herpes and cold sores, but in fact being a reason of other various illnesses; hepatitis B and C, which may lead to liver cancer; and influenza A and B. Scientists are nowadays studying the ability of expanding the class of antiviral drugs to other types of pathogens.
The occurrence of antivirals is due to largely extended knowledge about molecular and genetic functionality of organisms, this assists biomedical experts in their understanding of function and structure of viruses, great steps in the technologies for discovering new medicines, and great load put on the shoulders of doctors due to HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) and its result - fatal acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS).