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Coronaviruses and their therapy

Bart L Haagmans1, Albert D M E Osterhaus

  • 1Department of Virology, Erasmus Medical Center Rotterdam, Dr. Molewaterplein 50, 3015 GE Rotterdam, The Netherlands.

Antiviral Research
|July 14, 2006
PubMed

Insights

The emergence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV) spurred the development of therapeutics. Interferons and broad-spectrum protease inhibitors show promise for treating current and future coronavirus diseases.

Area of Science:

  • Virology
  • Immunology
  • Drug Discovery

Background:

  • Coronaviruses cause various diseases in humans and animals.
  • Limited therapeutic options existed due to low disease burden before SARS-CoV.
  • The emergence of SARS-CoV highlighted the need for specific antiviral treatments.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review the development of therapeutics against coronaviruses, particularly SARS-CoV.
  • To assess the efficacy of existing and novel antiviral strategies.
  • To identify potential treatments for future coronavirus outbreaks.

Main Methods:

  • Review of studies on SARS-CoV specific monoclonal antibodies.
  • Evaluation of pegylated-interferon-alpha and siRNAs efficacy in animal models.
  • In vitro testing of broad-spectrum antivirals and main protease inhibitors.

Main Results:

  • SARS-CoV specific monoclonal antibodies, pegylated-interferon-alpha, and siRNAs demonstrated efficacy.
  • Several broad-spectrum antivirals showed effectiveness in vitro.
  • Wide-spectrum inhibitors targeting main proteases are a promising area for new drug discovery.

Conclusions:

  • Interferons are a viable option for SARS-CoV or related coronavirus re-emergence.
  • Broad-spectrum inhibitors targeting coronavirus main proteases offer potential for new, multi-disease antivirals.

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