Defending against viruses is quite tough. Vaccines work by “teaching” our immune system to recognize a specific virus so it can mount an effective immune response. Another approach is the use of antivirals, which prevent viruses from replicating and can be used to treat a current infection. In a new study published in Nature Microbiology, microbiologist Jan Carette of Stanford University his colleagues have found a human gene that produces a protein without which a range of enteroviruses cannot replicate. The work could pave the way for antivirals effective against multiple illnesses—including most cases of the common cold.