Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 8, 2026

Surface Functionalization of Hepatitis E Virus Nanoparticles Using Chemical Conjugation Methods
Published on: May 11, 2018
Peptide inhibitors of flavivirus entry derived from the E protein stem
Aaron G Schmidt1, Priscilla L Yang, Stephen C Harrison
1Jack and Eileen Connors Structural Biology Laboratory, Department of Biological Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, Harvard Medical School, 250 Longwood Ave., Boston, MA 02115, USA.
Abstract:
Peptides derived from the "stem" of dengue virus (DV) type 2 (DV2) envelope (E) protein inhibit DV2 infectivity, targeting a late-stage fusion intermediate. We show here that stem peptides from all DV serotypes cross-inhibit DV1 to DV4 but that corresponding peptides derived from related flaviviruses do not. This failure to inhibit infection is not due to poor interaction with the E protein but rather to loss of association with the virion membrane. Residues 442 to 444 of the stem are determinants of inhibition; increasing hydrophobicity in this region increases inhibitory strength. These results support a two-step model of how stem-derived peptides inhibit viral entry.
Related Concept Videos
Inhibitors of Viral Protein Synthesis
Inhibitors Of Virion Release
Inhibitors of Virion Maturation and Assembly
Leaky Scanning
Antiviral Nucleoside Inhibitors

