Computer-Selected Antiviral Compounds: Assessing In Vitro Efficacies against Rift Valley Fever Virus

Bibliographic Details
Title: Computer-Selected Antiviral Compounds: Assessing In Vitro Efficacies against Rift Valley Fever Virus
Authors: Cigdem Alkan, Terrence O’Brien, Victor Kenyon, Tetsuro Ikegami
Source: Viruses, Vol 16, Iss 1, p 88 (2024)
Publisher Information: MDPI AG, 2024.
Publication Year: 2024
Collection: LCC:Microbiology
Subject Terms: Rift Valley fever, Arumowot virus, Heartland virus, Dabie bandavirus, Gc fusion loop, small molecule compound, Microbiology, QR1-502
More Details: Rift Valley fever is a zoonotic viral disease transmitted by mosquitoes, impacting both humans and livestock. Currently, there are no approved vaccines or antiviral treatments for humans. This study aimed to evaluate the in vitro efficacy of chemical compounds targeting the Gc fusion mechanism. These compounds were identified through virtual screening of millions of commercially available small molecules using a structure-based artificial intelligence bioactivity predictor. In our experiments, a pretreatment with small molecule compounds revealed that 3 out of 94 selected compounds effectively inhibited the replication of the Rift Valley fever virus MP-12 strain in Vero cells. As anticipated, these compounds did not impede viral RNA replication when administered three hours after infection. However, significant inhibition of viral RNA replication occurred upon viral entry when cells were pretreated with these small molecules. Furthermore, these compounds exhibited significant inhibition against Arumowot virus, another phlebovirus, while showing no antiviral effects on tick-borne bandaviruses. Our study validates AI-based virtual high throughput screening as a rational approach for identifying effective antiviral candidates for Rift Valley fever virus and other bunyaviruses.
Document Type: article
File Description: electronic resource
Language: English
ISSN: 1999-4915
Relation: https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4915/16/1/88; https://doaj.org/toc/1999-4915
DOI: 10.3390/v16010088
Access URL: https://doaj.org/article/bed1396f1af6474ba634eaa1c8d523a9
Accession Number: edsdoj.bed1396f1af6474ba634eaa1c8d523a9
Database: Directory of Open Access Journals
Full text is not displayed to guests.
More Details
ISSN:19994915
DOI:10.3390/v16010088
Published in:Viruses
Language:English