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Updated: Jul 19, 2025

High-throughput Screening for Broad-spectrum Chemical Inhibitors of RNA Viruses
Published on: May 5, 2014
Small-molecule oligonucleotides as smart modality for antiviral therapy: a medicinal chemistry perspective
Sidhartha S Kar1, Arghya Kusum Dhar2, Narahari N Palei3
1Institute of Pharmacy & Technology, Salipur, Cuttack, Odisha, 754202, India.
Abstract:
Small-molecule oligonucleotides could be exploited therapeutically to silence the expression of viral infection-causing genes, and a few of them are now in clinical trials for the management of viral infections. The most challenging aspect of these oligonucleotides' therapeutic success involves their delivery. Thus medicinal chemistry strategies are inevitable to avoid degradation by serum nucleases, avoid kidney clearance and improve cellular uptake. Recently small-molecule oligonucleotide design has opened up new avenues to improve the treatment of drug-resistant viral infections, along with the development of COVID-19 medicines. This review is directed toward the recent advances in rational design, mechanism of action, structure-activity relationships and future perspective of the small-molecule oligonucleotides targeting viral infections, including COVID-19.
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