When you consider that a virus is just a huge molecule, capable of splitting and reproducing, and attaching itself to similar large protein molecules in our cells and their nuclei, it becomes even more amazing. Here is a molecule, to which you and I sometimes assign an almost intelligent character, with a desire to live and procreate, but is really just a big, unintelligent molecule wrapped in a protein jacket, binding with our cells and causing damage in each cell it invades. And the fact that pharmaceutical chemists have stumbled upon ways of interrupting this invasion and replication is the most amazing part of the story. As sad as my treatment story was at times, I am virus free (to be verified once again tomorrow morning, this time for SVR), and the chemistry behind it all simply baffles my mind. All I can say is "Attaboy, chemists".

Alan

Thank you antivirals.   And Thank you mallani for making it a little easier to understand the work they do.  Do they do this for only HCV.  Or any virus. 

Hi,

We are all used to seeing our Viral Load figures. To expand on this:

Take a 'moderate' Viral Load of 5 million i.u./ml. Most labs now use 1 i.u.= 2.5 viral particles, so this is 12.5 million viral particles /ml. of blood.

That is 12,500 million/litre. A normal adult has 5 litres of blood. That gives us a circulating Blood Viral Load of 62,500 million (6.25 billion) viral particles.

Before Rx, most viral particles reside in the liver.

Most viral particles have a short life span, often just a few hours. This is why researchers have estimated there may be 1 trillion (1 million million) viral replications a day. As almost all replications occur in hepatocytes, imagine the millions of hepatocytes that are destroyed each day. Only an organ like the liver could put up with this damage. It seems amazing that it can take so long to develop significant fibrosis.

The antivirals can reduce this Viral Load to 'zero', sometimes in just 4 weeks. Makes you appreciate them more!