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Antiviral Chemistry & Chemotherapy Aug 2017This review describes the contemporary state of research for antivirals effective against flaviviruses, especially focusing on inhibitors of the pestivirus causative... (Review)
Review
This review describes the contemporary state of research for antivirals effective against flaviviruses, especially focusing on inhibitors of the pestivirus causative agent of bovine viral diarrhoea virus. We highlight cycluridine, an originally synthesized Mannich's base [a tetrahydro-2(1H)-pyrimidinones derivative], as a highly effective antiviral possessing a strong inhibitory effect on bovine viral diarrhoea virus replication. Cycluridine was active against replication of a wide variety of bovine viral diarrhoea virus strains in cell cultures. The drug-sensitive period in the bovine viral diarrhoea virus replication cycle included the latent period and the exponential phase; a 90-min delay in the peak of viral RNA synthesis was observed. Cycluridine administered orally manifested a pronounced protective effect in calves with natural mucosal disease/viral diarrhoea and calves experimentally infected with bovine viral diarrhoea virus. Its magnitude of activity and selectivity places cycluridine in the lead among all known substances with anti- bovine viral diarrhoea virus activity. Additionally, cycluridine applied subcutaneously showed anti-tick-born encephalitis virus activity, manifesting a marked protective effect in mice infected with tick-born encephalitis virus. Cycluridine could be a prospective antiviral in veterinary and medical practice for the treatment of bovine viral diarrhoea virus and other flavivirus infections.
Topics: Animals; Antiviral Agents; Flavivirus; Flavivirus Infections; Humans; Uridine
PubMed: 28768435
DOI: 10.1177/2040206617723442 -
Journal of Applied Microbiology May 2018With the emergence of antibiotic resistance, the interest for antimicrobial agents has recently increased again in public health. Copper was recognized in 2008 by the... (Review)
Review
With the emergence of antibiotic resistance, the interest for antimicrobial agents has recently increased again in public health. Copper was recognized in 2008 by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as the first metallic antimicrobial agent. This led to many investigations of the various properties of copper as an antibacterial, antifungal and antiviral agent. This review summarizes the latest findings about 'contact killing', the mechanism of action of copper nanoparticles and the different ways micro-organisms develop resistance to copper.
Topics: Anti-Bacterial Agents; Anti-Infective Agents; Antifungal Agents; Antiviral Agents; Copper; Drug Resistance, Microbial
PubMed: 29280540
DOI: 10.1111/jam.13681 -
Antiviral Research Jul 2022In addition to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV) and Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV), SARS-CoV-2 has become the third... (Review)
Review
In addition to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV) and Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV), SARS-CoV-2 has become the third deadly coronavirus that infects humans and causes the new coronavirus disease (COVID-19). COVID-19 has already caused more than six million deaths worldwide and it is likely the biggest pandemic of this century faced by mankind. Although many studies on SARS-CoV-2 have been conducted, a detailed understanding of SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 is still lacking. Animal models are indispensable for studying its pathogenesis and developing vaccines and antivirals. In this review, we analyze animal models of coronavirus infections and explore their applications on antivirals and vaccines.
Topics: Animals; Antiviral Agents; COVID-19; Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus; Models, Animal; SARS-CoV-2; Viral Vaccines; COVID-19 Drug Treatment
PubMed: 35605699
DOI: 10.1016/j.antiviral.2022.105345 -
Pharmacology & Therapeutics May 2020Favipiravir has been developed as an anti-influenza drug and licensed as an anti-influenza drug in Japan. Additionally, favipiravir is being stockpiled for 2 million... (Review)
Review
Favipiravir has been developed as an anti-influenza drug and licensed as an anti-influenza drug in Japan. Additionally, favipiravir is being stockpiled for 2 million people as a countermeasure for novel influenza strains. This drug functions as a chain terminator at the site of incorporation of the viral RNA and reduces the viral load. Favipiravir cures all mice in a lethal influenza infection model, while oseltamivir fails to cure the animals. Thus, favipiravir contributes to curing animals with lethal infection. In addition to influenza, favipiravir has a broad spectrum of anti-RNA virus activities in vitro and efficacies in animal models with lethal RNA viruses and has been used for treatment of human infection with life-threatening Ebola virus, Lassa virus, rabies, and severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome. The best feature of favipiravir as an antiviral agent is the apparent lack of generation of favipiravir-resistant viruses. Favipiravir alone maintains its therapeutic efficacy from the first to the last patient in an influenza pandemic or an epidemic lethal RNA virus infection. Favipiravir is expected to be an important therapeutic agent for severe influenza, the next pandemic influenza strain, and other severe RNA virus infections for which standard treatments are not available.
Topics: Amides; Animals; Antiviral Agents; Humans; Influenza, Human; Pyrazines; RNA Virus Infections
PubMed: 32097670
DOI: 10.1016/j.pharmthera.2020.107512 -
Medicine Jul 2017The efficacy and safety of direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) for treating hepatitis C virus (HCV)-infected renal transplant recipients (RTRs) has not been determined. (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis Review
BACKGROUND
The efficacy and safety of direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) for treating hepatitis C virus (HCV)-infected renal transplant recipients (RTRs) has not been determined.
METHODS
We searched PubMed, Embase, and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials and assessed the quality of eligible studies using the Joanna Briggs Institute scale. DAA efficacy and safety were assessed using standard mean difference (SMD) with 95% confidence intervals (95%CIs).
RESULTS
Six studies (360 RTRs) were included. Two hundred thirty six RTRs (98.3%) achieved sustained virological response within 12 weeks; HCV infection was cleared in 239 RTRs after 24-week treatment. Liver function differed significantly pre- and posttreatment (alanine aminotransferase, SMD: 0.96, 95%CIs: 0.65, 1.26; aspartate aminotransferase, SMD: 0.89, 95%CIs: 0.60, 1.18); allograft function pre- and posttreatment was not statistically different (serum creatinine, SMD: -0.13, 95%CIs: -0.38, 0.12; estimated glomerular filtration rate, SMD: 0.20, 95%CIs: -0.11, 0.51). General symptoms (fatigue nausea dizziness or headache) were the most common adverse events (AEs) (39.3%). Severe AEs, that is, anemia, portal vein thrombosis, and streptococcus bacteraemia and pneumonia, were present in 1.1%, 0.6%, and 1.1% of RTRs, respectively.
CONCLUSION
Our findings suggest that DAAs are highly efficacious and safe for treating HCV-infected RTRs and without significant AE.
Topics: Antiviral Agents; Hepatitis C, Chronic; Humans; Kidney Transplantation
PubMed: 28746204
DOI: 10.1097/MD.0000000000007568 -
Antiviral Research Dec 2022Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is a contagious disease affecting cloven-hoofed animals. Its transmissibility and antigenic variety make this disease difficult to control....
Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is a contagious disease affecting cloven-hoofed animals. Its transmissibility and antigenic variety make this disease difficult to control. Antiviral agents are expected to have an immediate effect that is independent of viral antigenicity; thus, they can serve as effective tools for inhibiting the spread of the causative agent, the FMD virus (FMDV), from infected animals. In this study, we investigated the antiviral activity of a pyrazinecarboxamide derivative, T-1105, against FMDV. Cytopathic effect inhibition assays revealed that T-1105 strongly inhibited the replication of 28 reference strains of all seven FMDV serotypes at non-cytotoxic concentrations. The antiviral effect of T-1105 against FMDV was also evaluated by experimental infection of domestic pigs. T-1105 was administered orally to pigs starting 1 h before or 6 h after the inoculation of a porcinophilic FMDV serotype O, topotype CATHAY. None of the pigs administered with T-1105 showed clinical signs of FMD. Moreover, no infectious FMDVs or FMDV-specific genes were detected in their sera, oral and nasal discharges, or tissues collected 48 h after virus inoculation. These findings strongly suggest that administration of T-1105 is effective in controlling the spread of FMDV in pigs.
Topics: Swine; Animals; Foot-and-Mouth Disease; Antiviral Agents; Foot-and-Mouth Disease Virus; Pyrazines
PubMed: 36181971
DOI: 10.1016/j.antiviral.2022.105425 -
Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) Jan 2021Subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE) is a late-onset, intractable, and fatal viral disease caused by persistent infection of the central nervous system by a mutant... (Review)
Review
Subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE) is a late-onset, intractable, and fatal viral disease caused by persistent infection of the central nervous system by a mutant strain of the measles virus. Ribavirin intracerebroventricular therapy has already been administered to several SSPE patients in Japan based on fundamental and clinical research findings from our group, with positive therapeutic effects reported in some patients. However, the efficacy of this treatment approach has not been unequivocally established. Hence, development of more effective therapeutic methods using new antiviral agents is urgently needed. This review describes the current status of SSPE treatment and research, highlighting promising approaches to the development of more effective therapeutic methods.
Topics: Animals; Antiviral Agents; Drug Development; Humans; Subacute Sclerosing Panencephalitis
PubMed: 33467470
DOI: 10.3390/molecules26020427 -
Drug Design, Development and Therapy 2022The aim of this report is to review the literature and shed light on the uncertainties surrounding the use of antiviral agents in general and remdesivir in COVID-19... (Review)
Review
The aim of this report is to review the literature and shed light on the uncertainties surrounding the use of antiviral agents in general and remdesivir in COVID-19 patients. This review evaluated a battery of antiviral compounds and their effectiveness in the treatment of COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic. Remdesivir is the only antiviral approved by the EMA and FDA for the treatment of SARS-CoV-2 infection. This work extensively reviews remdesivir data generated from clinical trials and observational studies, paying attention to the most recent data, and focusing on outcomes to give readers a more comprehensive understanding of the results. This review also discusses the recommendations issued by official bodies during the pandemic in the light of the current knowledge. The use of remdesivir in the treatment of SARS-CoV-2 infection is justified because a virus is the causative agent that triggers the inflammatory responses and its consequences. More trials are needed to improve the management of this disease.
Topics: Adenosine Monophosphate; Alanine; Antiviral Agents; Humans; SARS-CoV-2; Virus Replication; COVID-19 Drug Treatment
PubMed: 35370401
DOI: 10.2147/DDDT.S356951 -
Food and Environmental Virology Jun 2022The use of natural resources for the prevention and treatment of diseases considered fatal to humanity has evolved. Several medicinal plants have nutritional and... (Review)
Review
The use of natural resources for the prevention and treatment of diseases considered fatal to humanity has evolved. Several medicinal plants have nutritional and pharmacological potential in the prevention and treatment of viral infections, among them, turmeric, which is recognized for its biological properties associated with curcuminoids, mainly represented by curcumin, and found mostly in rhizomes. The purpose of this review was to compile the pharmacological activities of curcumin and its analogs, aiming at stimulating their use as a therapeutic strategy to treat infections caused by RNA genome viruses. We revisited its historical application as an anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and antiviral agent that combined with low toxicity, motivated research against viruses affecting the population for decades. Most findings concentrate particularly on arboviruses, HIV, and the recent SARS-CoV-2. As one of the main conclusions, associating curcuminoids with nanomaterials increases solubility, bioavailability, and antiviral effects, characterized by blocking the entry of the virus into the cell or by inhibiting key enzymes in viral replication and transcription.
Topics: Antiviral Agents; Curcumin; Diarylheptanoids; Humans; RNA; SARS-CoV-2; COVID-19 Drug Treatment
PubMed: 35352306
DOI: 10.1007/s12560-022-09514-3 -
Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) Mar 2023Pesticides are essential for the development of agriculture. It is urgent to develop green, safe and efficient pesticides. Bisindole alkaloids have unique and concise...
Pesticides are essential for the development of agriculture. It is urgent to develop green, safe and efficient pesticides. Bisindole alkaloids have unique and concise structures and broad biological activities, which make them an important leading skeleton in the creation of new pesticides. In this work, we synthesized bisindole alkaloid barakacin in a simple seven-step process, and simultaneously designed and synthesized a series of its derivatives. Biological activity research indicated that most of these compounds displayed good antiviral activities against tobacco mosaic virus (TMV). Among them, compound exerted a superior inhibitory effect in comparison to commercially available antiviral agent ribavirin, and could be expected to become a novel antiviral candidate. Molecular biology experiments and molecular docking research found that the potential target of compound was TMV coat protein (CP). These compounds also showed broad-spectrum anti-fungal activities against seven kinds of plant fungi.
Topics: Antiviral Agents; Structure-Activity Relationship; Molecular Docking Simulation; Fungicides, Industrial; Ribavirin; Tobacco Mosaic Virus; Alkaloids; Drug Design
PubMed: 37049795
DOI: 10.3390/molecules28073032