Inhibition of adenovirus multiplication by inosine pranobex and interferon α in vitro

There are no specific antivirals designed for adenoviral infections. Due to many cases of adenovirus infections worldwide, epidemic nature of some types of adenoviruses, and growing number of patients with severe adenoviral infections resulting from dysfunction the immune system, the need for searching an effective and safe therapy is increasing. Inosine pranobex exerts antiviral effects which are both direct and secondary to immunomodulatory activity. In the present study we evaluated in vitro effect of inosine pranobex and interferon α (IFN-α) on replication of HAdV-2 and HAdV-5. The effectiveness of inosine pranobex under these conditions has not been previously reported. In conducted study we reported that inosine pranobex reduced the titer of infectious HAdV-2 and HAdV-5 in vitro. Higher concentrations of IP strongly inhibited multiplication of viruses. Combination of inosine pranobex and IFN-α display higher efficacy than either treatment alone and suggest that both agents may increase therapeutic effectiveness without augmenting toxic effects. Combination index calculations showed that inosine pranobex and INF-α synergistically inhibit HAdV-2 and HAdV-5 titers in A549 cells.