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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2015 Jul 27.
Published in final edited form as: Recent Pat Antiinfect Drug Discov. 2012 Apr;7(1):8–18. doi: 10.2174/157489112799829765

Table 2. Summary of the Novel Drugs for the Treatment of CMV Retinitis.

New Anti-CMV Drugs Mechanism of Action Advantages
Maribavir Interferes with viral nucleocapsid egress from infected cell
nucleus		 Different mechanism of action reduces the cross resistance
associated with earlier drugs
BAY 38-4766 Inhibits DNA maturation Decreases mutation in UL89 and UL56 genes responsible
for development of drug resistance
Cidofovir esters Inhibits viral DNA synthesis Significant improvement in oral bioavailability (88-97%)
without any renal toxicity
Benzimidazole ribosides Block the cleavage/packaging of viral genomes Novel mechanism of action confers efficacy to drug resistant
strains
Cyclopropavir and methyle-necyclopropane
analogs 		Inhibits viral DNA synthesis and the normal activity of the
UL97 kinase		 Retains its activity against most GCV-resistant and clinical
isolates
AIC246 Inhibits the cleavage/packaging of viral DNA Excellent antiviral activity against clinical isolates of CMV