Antiviral targets in the prevention and treatment of measles

Despite the efforts of national and international health agencies to eradicate measles virus (MeV), the causative agent of measles, progress has stagnated and cases are rising. Since 1963, a well tolerated and efficacious live-attenuated vaccine has been used to remarkable success, leading to the near eradication of measles virus. Nevertheless, increased vaccine hesitancy has led to a resurgence in the past decade. The development of specific antiviral therapeutics to combat measles is lagging but increased efforts are justified considering the current measles resurgence and needs to protect vulnerable populations.

While no specific therapeutics have been approved to date, major advances in the development of measles-specific small molecule antivirals and biologics have been made recently. In this review, we provide an update on their development covering three major areas: drugs targeting viral entry; drugs targeting viral replication; and drugs targeting host factors utilized by MeV. Finally, we identify critical gaps and novel approaches that may enhance our current repertoire of antivirals targeting MeV.

The recent advances in the development and preclinical testing of MeV-targeting antivirals offer multiple independent avenues for their clinical evaluation.