scholarly journals In Vitro Activities of Methylenecyclopropane Analogues of Nucleosides and Their Phosphoralaninate Prodrugs against Cytomegalovirus and Other Herpesvirus Infections

2000 ◽  
Vol 44 (6) ◽  
pp. 1506-1511 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rachel J. Rybak ◽  
Caroll B. Hartline ◽  
Yao-Ling Qiu ◽  
Jiri Zemlicka ◽  
Emma Harden ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) infection does not generally cause problems in the immunocompetent adult but can result in severe clinical disease in the fetus, neonate, and immunocompromised host. Ganciclovir (GCV), the agent currently used to treat most HCMV infections, has resulted in much therapeutic success; however, efficacy remains suboptimal. Therefore, there is still a need to develop new compounds for use against HCMV infections. In the present study, severalZ- and E-series methylenecyclopropane analogues and their phosphoroalaninate prodrugs were tested initially for activity against HCMV, strain AD169, and murine cytomegalovirus (MCMV) in vitro. Many were found to exhibit efficacy comparable to that of GCV against HCMV in plaque assays and were active against MCMV as well. The compounds were also tested for efficacy against herpes simplex virus types 1 and 2, varicella-zoster virus, and Epstein-Barr virus, and some had levels of activity that were comparable to that of acyclovir. In addition, the compounds synguanol (QYL-438) and 2-amino-6-cyclopropylamino analogue (QYL-769) were chosen for further evaluation and were found to be effective against additional laboratory and clinical isolates of HCMV and GCV-resistant isolates. QYL-438 and QYL-769 were found to be nontoxic in human and mouse fibroblasts and were considerably less toxic than GCV in granulocyte macrophage CFUs and erythroid burst-forming units. These results provide evidence for the high activity of some of these methylenecyclopropane analogues against various herpesviruses, particularly HCMV, in tissue culture and suggest that further evaluation is warranted to determine their potential for use in future clinical studies.

2005 ◽  
Vol 49 (9) ◽  
pp. 3724-3733 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephanie L. Williams-Aziz ◽  
Caroll B. Hartline ◽  
Emma A. Harden ◽  
Shannon L. Daily ◽  
Mark N. Prichard ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Cidofovir (CDV) is an effective therapy for certain human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) infections in immunocompromised patients that are resistant to other antiviral drugs, but the compound is not active orally. To improve oral bioavailability, a series of lipid analogs of CDV and cyclic CDV (cCDV), including hexadecyloxypropyl-CDV and -cCDV and octadecyloxyethyl-CDV and -cCDV, were synthesized and found to have multiple-log-unit enhanced activity against HCMV in vitro. On the basis of the activity observed with these analogs, additional lipid esters were synthesized and evaluated for their activity against herpes simplex virus (HSV) types 1 and 2, human cytomegalovirus, murine cytomegalovirus, varicella-zoster virus (VZV), Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), human herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6), and HHV-8. Using several different in vitro assays, concentrations of drug as low as 0.001 μM reduced herpesvirus replication by 50% (EC50) with the CDV analogs, whereas the cCDV compounds were generally less active. In most of the assays performed, the EC50 values of the lipid esters were at least 100-fold lower than the EC50 values for unmodified CDV or cCDV. The lipid analogs were also active against isolates that were resistant to CDV, ganciclovir, or foscarnet. These results indicate that the lipid ester analogs are considerably more active than CDV itself against HSV, VZV, CMV, EBV, HHV-6, and HHV-8 in vitro, suggesting that they may have potential for the treatment of infections caused by a variety of herpesviruses.


Viruses ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 303 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sigrun Häge ◽  
Eric Sonntag ◽  
Eva Maria Borst ◽  
Pierre Tannig ◽  
Lisa Seyler ◽  
...  

Nuclear egress is a regulated process shared by α-, β- and γ-herpesviruses. The core nuclear egress complex (NEC) is composed of the membrane-anchored protein homologs of human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) pUL50, murine cytomegalovirus (MCMV) pM50, Epstein–Barr virus (EBV) BFRF1 or varicella zoster virus (VZV) Orf24, which interact with the autologous NEC partners pUL53, pM53, BFLF2 or Orf27, respectively. Their recruitment of additional proteins leads to the assembly of a multicomponent NEC, coordinately regulating viral nucleocytoplasmic capsid egress. Here, the functionality of VZV, HCMV, MCMV and EBV core NECs was investigated by coimmunoprecipitation and confocal imaging analyses. Furthermore, a recombinant MCMV, harboring a replacement of ORF M50 by UL50, was analyzed both in vitro and in vivo. In essence, core NEC interactions were strictly limited to autologous NEC pairs and only included one measurable nonautologous interaction between the homologs of HCMV and MCMV. A comparative analysis of MCMV-WT versus MCMV-UL50-infected murine fibroblasts revealed almost identical phenotypes on the levels of protein and genomic replication kinetics. In infected BALB/c mice, virus spread to lung and other organs was found comparable between these viruses, thus stating functional complementarity. In conclusion, our study underlines that herpesviral core NEC proteins are functionally conserved regarding complementarity of core NEC interactions, which were found either virus-specific or restricted within subfamilies.


2009 ◽  
Vol 53 (12) ◽  
pp. 5251-5258 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark N. Prichard ◽  
Debra C. Quenelle ◽  
Caroll B. Hartline ◽  
Emma A. Harden ◽  
Geraldine Jefferson ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT A series of 4′-thionucleosides were synthesized and evaluated for activities against orthopoxviruses and herpesviruses. We reported previously that one analog, 5-iodo-4′-thio-2′-deoxyuridine (4′-thioIDU), exhibits good activity both in vitro and in vivo against two orthopoxviruses. This compound also has good activity in cell culture against many of the herpesviruses. It inhibited the replication of herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1), HSV-2, and varicella-zoster virus with 50% effective concentrations (EC50s) of 0.1, 0.5, and 2 μM, respectively. It also inhibited the replication of human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) with an EC50 of 5.9 μM but did not selectively inhibit Epstein-Barr virus, human herpesvirus 6, or human herpesvirus 8. While acyclovir-resistant strains of HSV-1 and HSV-2 were comparatively resistant to 4′-thioIDU, it retained modest activity (EC50s of 4 to 12 μM) against these strains. Some ganciclovir-resistant strains of HCMV also exhibited reduced susceptibilities to the compound, which appeared to be related to the specific mutations in the DNA polymerase, consistent with the observed incorporation of the compound into viral DNA. The activity of 4′-thioIDU was also evaluated using mice infected intranasally with the MS strain of HSV-2. Although there was no decrease in final mortality rates, the mean length of survival after inoculation increased significantly (P < 0.05) for all animals receiving 4′-thioIDU. The findings from the studies presented here suggest that 4′-thioIDU is a good inhibitor of some herpesviruses, as well as orthopoxviruses, and this class of compounds warrants further study as a therapy for infections with these viruses.


2005 ◽  
Vol 49 (3) ◽  
pp. 1039-1045 ◽  
Author(s):  
Earl R. Kern ◽  
Nicole L. Kushner ◽  
Caroll B. Hartline ◽  
Stephanie L. Williams-Aziz ◽  
Emma A. Harden ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT We have reported previously that methylenecyclopropane analogs of nucleosides have excellent activity against certain members of the herpesvirus family. A second generation, the 2,2-bis-hydroxymethyl derivatives, were synthesized, and 18 compounds were tested for activity in vitro against herpes simplex virus types 1 and 2 (HSV-1 and HSV-2), human and murine cytomegalovirus (HCMV and MCMV), varicella-zoster virus (VZV), and Epstein-Barr virus (EBV). Selected analogs were also evaluated against human herpesvirus type 6 (HHV-6) and HHV-8. None of the 18 compounds had activity against HSV-1 or HSV-2, but four were active against VZV by plaque reduction (PR) assay at 50% effective concentration (EC50) levels of ≤50 μM. Six of the 18 compounds were active against HCMV by cytopathic effect or PR assays with EC50s of 0.5 to 44 μM, and all were active against MCMV by PR (0.3 to 54 μM). Four of the compounds were active against EBV by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (<0.3 to 4.4 μM). Four compounds with CMV activity were also active against HHV-6A and HHV-6B (0.7 to 28 μM), and three compounds were active against HHV-8 (5.5 to 16 μM). One of these, ZSM-I-62, had particularly good activity against CMV, HHV-6, and HHV-8, with EC50s of 0.7 to 8 μM. Toxicity was evaluated in adherent and nonadherent cells, and minimal cytotoxicity was observed. Mechanism of action studies with HCMV suggested that these compounds are phosphorylated by the ppUL97 phosphotransferase and are potent inhibitors of viral DNA synthesis. These results indicate that at least one of these compounds may have potential for use in treating CMV and other herpesvirus infections in humans.


2014 ◽  
Vol 58 (8) ◽  
pp. 4328-4340 ◽  
Author(s):  
Natacha Coen ◽  
Sophie Duraffour ◽  
Kazuhiro Haraguchi ◽  
Jan Balzarini ◽  
Joost J. van den Oord ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTThe emergence of drug-resistant herpesviruses represents a significant problem in clinical practice, primarily in immunocompromised patients. Furthermore, effective antiviral therapies against gammaherpesvirus-associated diseases are lacking. Here, we present two thiothymidine derivatives, KAY-2-41 and KAH-39-149, with different spectra of antiviral activity from those of the reference antiherpetic drugs, showing inhibitory activities against herpes simplex virus, varicella-zoster virus (VZV), and particularly against Epstein-Barr virus, with high selectivityin vitro. While KAY-2-41- and KAH-39-149-resistant herpesviruses were found to harbor mutations in the viral thymidine kinase (TK), these mutations conferred only low levels of resistance to these drugs but high levels to other TK-dependent drugs. Also, antiviral assays in HeLa TK-deficient cells showed a lack of KAY-2-41 and KAH-39-149 activities against herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) and HSV-2 TK-deficient mutants. Furthermore, enzymatic TK assays showed the ability of HSV-1 TK, VZV TK, and cellular TK1 and TK2 to recognize and phosphorylate KAY-2-41 and KAH-39-149. These results demonstrate that the compounds depend on both viral and host TKs to exert antiviral activity. Additionally, the antiviral efficacy of KAH-39-149 proved to be superior to that of KAY-2-41 in a mouse model of gammaherpesvirus infection, highlighting the potential of this class of antiviral agents for further development as selective therapeutics against Epstein-Barr virus.


2005 ◽  
Vol 79 (24) ◽  
pp. 15582-15585 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian Schlieker ◽  
Gregory A. Korbel ◽  
Lisa M. Kattenhorn ◽  
Hidde L. Ploegh

ABSTRACT The largest tegument protein of herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1), UL36, contains a novel deubiquitinating activity embedded in it. All members of the Herpesviridae contain a homologue of HSV-1 UL36, the N-terminal segments of which show perfect conservation of those residues implicated in catalysis. For murine cytomegalovirus and Epstein-Barr virus, chosen as representatives of the beta- and gammaherpesvirus subfamilies, respectively, we here show that the homologous modules indeed display deubiquitinating activity in vitro. The conservation of this activity throughout all subfamilies is indicative of an important, if not essential, function.


Author(s):  
Randall C. Walker

The following types of viral infections are discussed in this chapter: viral infections that have the capacity for multiorgan or systemic disease; infections that affect adults who may be otherwise healthy or at least not in special populations such as herpes simplex virus (HSV) type 1, varicella-zoster virus (VZV), Epstein-Barr virus, adenovirus, mumps virus, human parvovirus B19, and coxsackievirus. Reviews of these viruses focus on differentiating clinical features, diagnostic tools and treatment, and salient microbiologic and epidemiologic factors.


Author(s):  
Peter G. E. Kennedy

Abstract Several viruses have the capacity to cause serious infections of the nervous system in patients who are immunosuppressed. Individuals may be immunosuppressed because of primary inherited immunodeficiency, secondary immunodeficiency due to particular diseases such as malignancy, administration of immunosuppressant drugs or organ or bone marrow transplantation. The viruses capable of such opportunistic infection of the nervous system include herpes simplex virus (HSV), Varicella-Zoster virus (VZV), Cytomegalovirus (CMV), Epstein –Barr virus (EBV), Human Herpes virus type 6 (HHV-6), JC virus (JCV), enterovirus, measles virus and Covid-19. In most cases it seems likely that immunological defence mechanisms in the immunosuppressed are deficient which creates a suitable environment for certain viruses to become opportunistic in the nervous and other systems. Further research is required both to understand these opportunistic mechanisms in more detail and also to determine how many virus infections are modified by specific inborn errors of immunological responses.


2008 ◽  
Vol 52 (8) ◽  
pp. 2727-2733 ◽  
Author(s):  
David I. Bernstein ◽  
Nathalie Goyette ◽  
Rhonda Cardin ◽  
Earl R. Kern ◽  
Guy Boivin ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Phosphorothioated oligonucleotides have a sequence-independent antiviral activity as amphipathic polymers (APs). The activity of these agents against herpesvirus infections in vitro and in vivo was investigated. The previously established sequence-independent, phosphorothioation-dependent antiviral activity of APs was confirmed in vitro by showing that a variety of equivalently sized homo- and heteropolymeric AP sequences were similarly active against herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) infection in vitro compared to the 40mer degenerate parent compound (REP 9), while the absence of phosphorothioation resulted in the loss of antiviral activity. In addition, REP 9 demonstrated in vitro activity against a broad spectrum of other herpesviruses: HSV-2 (50% effective concentration [EC50], 0.02 to 0.06 μM), human cytomegalovirus (EC50, 0.02 to 0.13 μM), varicella zoster virus (EC50, <0.02 μM), Epstein-Barr virus (EC50, 14.7 μM) and human herpesvirus types 6A/B (EC50, 2.9 to 10.2 μM). The murine microbicide model of genital HSV-2 was then used to evaluate in vivo activity. REP 9 (275 mg/ml) protected 75% of animals from disease and infection when provided 5 or 30 min prior to vaginal challenge. When an acid-stable analog (REP 9C) was used, 75% of mice were protected when treated with 240 mg/ml 5 min prior to infection (P < 0.001), while a lower dose (100 mg/ml) protected 100% of the mice (P < 0.001). The acid stable REP 9C formulation also provided protection at 30 min (83%, P < 0.001) and 60 min (50%, P = 0.07) against disease. These observations suggest that APs may have microbicidal activity and potential as broad-spectrum antiherpetic agents and represent a novel class of agents that should be studied further.


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