title: The combination of type I interferon and ribavirin has an inhibitory effect on mouse hepatitis virus infection.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine the differences in efficacy between therapy using IFN-beta and ribavirin, and using IFN-alpha and ribavirin.
  
  
  METHODS
  We studied the effect of combination therapy consisting of IFN-beta and ribavirin on mouse hepatitis virus (MHV) infection in mice.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Combination treatment of ribavirin and IFN-alpha was more effective than IFN-alpha mono-treatment in the MHV-mouse system, and combination treatment with ribavirin and IFN-beta was more effective than IFN-beta mono-treatment in the MHV-mouse system. Furthermore, administering IFN-beta once or twice one day before combination treatment using ribavirin and IFN-alpha was more effective than administering IFN-alpha once or twice one day before the combination treatment using ribavirin and IFN-alpha.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These data indicate that this MHV-infection system is a good animal model to assess anti-HCV activity for therapy using IFN and ribavirin, and suggest that administering IFN-beta before the start of combination therapy with ribavirin and IFN-alpha promotes the therapeutic effects of combination treatment with ribavirin and IFN-alpha ?in chronic hepatitis C patients.
authors.affiliation: Pharmaceutical Research Laboratory, Toray Industries Inc. Kanagawa, Kanagawa, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Saburo
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sone
authors.forename: Akiko
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Izawa
authors.forename: Hideki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Narumi
authors.forename: Akemi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kajita
authors.forename: Junichi
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Tanabe
authors.forename: Fumihiro
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Taguchi