0 avis
A pan-serotype dengue virus inhibitor targeting the NS3–NS4B interaction
Archive ouverte
Edité par CCSD ; Nature Publishing Group -
Dengue virus causes approximately 96 million symptomatic infections annually, manifesting as dengue fever or occasionally as severe dengue[1,2]. There are no antiviral agents available to prevent or treat dengue. Here, we describe a highly potent dengue virus inhibitor (JNJ-A07) that exerts nanomolar to picomolar activity against a panel of 21 clinical isolates that represent the natural genetic diversity of known genotypes and serotypes. The molecule has a high barrier to resistance and prevents the formation of the viral replication complex by blocking the interaction between two viral proteins (NS3 and NS4B), thus revealing a previously undescribed mechanism of antiviral action. JNJ-A07 has a favourable pharmacokinetic profile that results in outstanding efficacy against dengue virus infection in mouse infection models. Delaying start of treatment until peak viraemia results in a rapid and significant reduction in viral load. An analogue is currently in further development. © 2021. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Limited.