scholarly journals The role of growth factor receptors in viral infections: An opportunity for drug repurposing against emerging viral diseases such as COVID‐19?

2020 ◽  
Vol 2 (5) ◽  
pp. 296-303 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hubert Hondermarck ◽  
Nathan W. Bartlett ◽  
Victor Nurcombe
2020 ◽  
Vol 27 ◽  
Author(s):  
Igor José dos Santos Nascimento ◽  
Thiago Mendonça de Aquino ◽  
Edeildo Ferreira da Silva-Júnior

Background: Viral diseases are responsible for several deaths around the world. Over the past few years, the world has seen several outbreaks caused by viral diseases that for a long time seemed to possess no risk. These are diseases that have been forgotten for a long time and, until nowadays, there are no approved drugs or vaccines, leading the pharmaceutical industry and several research groups to run out of time in the search for new pharmacological treatments or prevention methods. In this context, drug repurposing proves to be a fast and economically viable technique, considering the fact that it uses drugs that have a well-established safety profile. Thus, in this review, we present the main advances in drug repurposing and their benefit for searching new treatments against emerging viral diseases. Methods: We conducted a search in the bibliographic databases (Science Direct, Bentham Science, PubMed, Springer, ACS Publisher, Wiley, and NIH’s COVID-19 Portfolio) using the keywords "drug repurposing", "emerging viral infections" and each of the diseases reported here (CoV; ZIKV; DENV; CHIKV; EBOV and MARV) as an inclusion/exclusion criterion. A subjective analysis was performed regarding the quality of the works for inclusion in this manuscript. Thus, the selected works were those that presented drugs repositioned against the emerging viral diseases presented here by means of computational, high-throughput screening or phenotype-based strategies, with no time limit and of relevant scientific value. Results: 291 papers were selected, 24 of which were CHIKV; 52 for ZIKV; 43 for DENV; 35 for EBOV; 10 for MARV; and 56 for CoV and the rest (72 papers) related to the drugs repurposing and emerging viral diseases. Among CoV-related articles, most were published in 2020 (31 papers), updating the current topic. Besides, between the years 2003 - 2005, 10 articles were created, and from 2011 - 2015 there were 7 articles, portraying the outbreaks that occurred at that time. For ZIKV, similar to CoV, most publications were during the period of outbreaks between the years 2016 - 2017 (23 articles). Similarly, most CHIKV (13 papers) and DENV (14 papers) publications occur at the same time interval. For EBOV (13 papers) and MARV (4 papers), they were between the years 2015 - 2016. Through this review, several drugs were highlighted that can be evolved in vivo and clinical trials as possible used against these pathogens showed that remdesivir represent potential treatments against CoV. Furthermore, ribavirin may also be a potential treatment against CHIKV; sofosbuvir against ZIKV; celgosivir against DENV, and favipiravir against EBOV and MARV, representing new hopes against these pathogens. Conclusions: The conclusions of this review manuscript show the potential of the drug repurposing strategy in the discovery of new pharmaceutical products, as from this approach, drugs that could be used against emerging viral diseases. Thus, this strategy deserves more attention among research groups and is a promising approach to the discovery of new drugs against emerging viral diseases and also other diseases.


Life ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 232
Author(s):  
Srikanth Elesela ◽  
Nicholas W. Lukacs

Viral diseases account for an increasing proportion of deaths worldwide. Viruses maneuver host cell machinery in an attempt to subvert the intracellular environment favorable for their replication. The mitochondrial network is highly susceptible to physiological and environmental insults, including viral infections. Viruses affect mitochondrial functions and impact mitochondrial metabolism, and innate immune signaling. Resurgence of host-virus interactions in recent literature emphasizes the key role of mitochondria and host metabolism on viral life processes. Mitochondrial dysfunction leads to damage of mitochondria that generate toxic compounds, importantly mitochondrial DNA, inducing systemic toxicity, leading to damage of multiple organs in the body. Mitochondrial dynamics and mitophagy are essential for the maintenance of mitochondrial quality control and homeostasis. Therefore, metabolic antagonists may be essential to gain a better understanding of viral diseases and develop effective antiviral therapeutics. This review briefly discusses how viruses exploit mitochondrial dynamics for virus proliferation and induce associated diseases.


2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 020-027
Author(s):  
Angel San Miguel Hernández ◽  
María San Miguel Rodríguez ◽  
Angel San Miguel Rodriguez

Emerging viral diseases encompass two types, those of new appearance in the population and those that we previously knew about or re-emerging, but that at a certain moment present an exponential increase in incidence or geographic distribution in the form of epidemics or outbreaks. These emerging and re-emerging viruses share a series of characteristics that establish the emerging virus model, such as having an RNA genome, being zoonotic, transmitted by vectors and transmissible to humans, that the virus is able to recognize and provoke a response in receptors. Conserved in several species and inhabiting ecosystems that undergo ecological, demographic or social changes that favor the spread of the virus. There are different factors that contribute to facilitating the emergence of viral infections, although this is made up of three fundamental aspects such as the susceptible population, the virus itself and the environment where both can interact.


Author(s):  
Akshay Vaidya

Viral infections remain major “worldwide” cause of morbidity and mortality.  Herbal extracts or wholesome drugs have been in use for medicinal purposes since ancient time and are known for their antiviral properties and more tolerable side effects. Thus, naturally based pharmacotherapy is a proper alternative for treating viral diseases. Hence this article describes potential antiviral properties of medicinal plants against diverse group of viruses and suggests screening the potential of plants possessing broad spectrum anti-viral effects against viral diseases. Guduchyadi Kwath is a polyherb ayurvedic preparation useful in various diseases. It is useful in pitta vikar, shleshma vikar, Jwara, Chardi, Daha, Trushna, and Agnimandya1. According to modern science it showed anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antibacterial, antiviral, antimalarial, hepatoprotective, wound healing and immune-modulatory action. The study is aim to the effect of “Guduchyadi kashaya” on viral diseases.


Cytokine ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 56 (1) ◽  
pp. 60
Author(s):  
Canhui Guo ◽  
Anu Gupta ◽  
Sarmishtha De ◽  
Brian P. Rubin ◽  
George R. Stark

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rodrigo Berzaghi ◽  
Felipe V. Pereira ◽  
Vera S.C. Maia ◽  
Jorge B. Scutti ◽  
Luiz R. Travassos

2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 224-232
Author(s):  
Jamal Uddin Ahmed ◽  
Muhammad Abdur Rahim ◽  
Khwaja Nazim Uddin

Human life is intricately related to it’s surrounding environment which also harbors other animals and some deadly infectious pathogens. Any threat to the environment can thus increase the threat of new and so-called ‘emerging infectious diseases’ (EIDs) especially novel viral infections called ‘emerging viral diseases’. This occurs partly due to changing climate as well as human interference with nature and animal life. An important event in new disease emergence is genetic changes in the pathogen that make it possible to become established in a new host species, productively infect new individuals in the new hosts (typically humans) and create local, regional or worldwide health threats. The world has witnessed some emerging and deadly viral threats in recent past with huge mortality and morbidity. Among them were severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), bird flu, swine flu, Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS), ebola virus disease. Moreover some disease has caused great concern in certain regions including Bangladesh in terms of morbidity, like Nipah virus, Zika virus, Dengue and Chikungunya fever. Here in this article an attempt was made to briefly describe some of these emerging viral infections.Birdem Med J 2017; 7(3): 224-232


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