oseltamivir, antiviral drug that is active against both influenza type A and influenza type B viruses. Oseltamivir and a similar agent called zanamivir (marketed as Relenza) were approved in 1999 by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and represented the first members in a new class of antiviral drugs known as neuraminidase inhibitors. Oseltamivir is marketed as Tamiflu by the U.S.-based pharmaceutical company Hoffman–La Roche, Inc.
Oseltamivir can be given orally. Through the inhibition of neuraminidase, a glycoprotein on the surface of influenza viruses, the drug decreases the release of virus from infected cells, increases the formation of viral aggregates, and decreases the spread of the virus through the body. Oseltamivir is effective when administered within two days of symptom onset. The drug can also be used to prevent flu in adults and children who take the medication once daily for a period of at least 10 days. There is evidence that the most common subtype of influenza type A virus, known as H1N1, has developed resistance to oseltamivir.