The University of Georgia and Yale University researchers have discovered a compound with potentially more efficacy than existing agents in treating shingles, according to a report from the University of Georgia.

The new anti-shingles agent is called L-BHDA.  Rights to this treatment are licensed to Bukwang Pharmaceutical for pre-clinical investigations by the University of Georgia Research Foundation and Yale University. 

“We need new options for medications with increased potency and specificity that can treat VZV, including strains that may be resistant to existing drugs,” said medicinal chemist Chung (David) Chu, distinguished research professor of pharmaceutical and biomedical sciences at UGA, one of the inventors of L-BHDA. 

While a vaccine to a prevent a shingles attack has been available to older adults since 2006, only a small percentage of older people receive the shot—mostly because of cost, insurance issues, and supply shortages, says a recent study in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.