IBR

IBR is a novel dealing with an unusual idea for preventing human genital herpes infections. I have taken the concept of 'viral interference' -that is, the interference by one type of virus with the growth and replication of another similar type- and borrowed an animal virus from my veterinary colleagues. This virus (infectious bovine rhinotracheitis virus -or IBR for short) has remarkably similar characteristics and requirements to that of the herpes strain, but is not usually considered to be a human pathogen. The story is an extrapolation from what we know of the biological and clinical properties of both organisms, and is entirely plausible from a theoretical perspective.

In the story sporadic cases of the animal virus infection start occurring in a large Pacific northwestern city, but it isn't until a young patient of his almost dies that a family doctor begins to suspect there is a pattern to the outbreak. While searching for information in the university library, he discovers that his patient's gynecologist and a virologist involved in her hospital care have both been doing research on the unusual virus for years. The mystery deepens as we shift perspective and begin to realize others, too are interested in the disease, but for completely different reasons...

The book attempts to explore the gulf between research and its application