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Updated: Jun 8, 2026

High-throughput Antiviral Assays to Screen for Inhibitors of Zika Virus Replication
Published on: October 30, 2021
Small molecule inhibitors of hantavirus infection
Pamela R Hall1, Andrei Leitão, Chunyan Ye
1Department of Pathology, University of New Mexico School of Medicine, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA.
Abstract:
Hantaviruses use α(v)β(3) integrins on the surface of human host cells as a gateway to invasion, hence compounds that target this receptor may be used as antiviral agents. To accomplish this aim, new peptidomimetic compounds were selected based on similarity to a cyclic peptide known to bind the α(v)β(3) receptor. This first round of biological screening identified peptidomimetic molecules which were effective hantavirus inhibitors in the low micromolar range, two thousand times more potent than the original cyclic peptide. Pharmacophore models were built to broaden the structural diversity of the second set of compounds screened. Structure-activity relationships (SAR) were drawn from the entire dataset. Further characterization by dose-response studies revealed that three compounds had potency in the nanomolar range. Selectivity assays with a panel of hantaviruses supported the mechanism of inhibition by targeting the α(v)β(3) receptor, through the β(3) integrin.
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