AN ANTIVIRAL SUBSTANCE FROM PENICILLIUM FUNICULOSUM

Helenine exerts a therapeutic effect against Semliki Forest virus infections of mice. Cures, that is to say the survival of treated animals, were more frequently observed in Semliki Forest virus infections than they were in SK virus infections. It is believed that this difference in end-result probably represented only a quantitative difference in the therapeutic effect of helenine against these two viruses and not a qualitative difference in its mechanism of therapeutic action. The findings reported in this paper with regard to the treatment of Semliki Forest virus infections with helenine parallel very closely those described in an accompanying paper which deals with the action of helenine on SK. virus infections.