Antiviral screening of natural, anti-inflammatory compound library against African swine fever virus.

Abstract (Expand)

African swine fever virus (ASFV) is a major threat to pig production and the lack of effective vaccines underscores the need to develop robust antiviral countermeasures. Pathologically, a significant … elevation in pro-inflammatory cytokine production is associated with ASFV infection in pigs and there is high interest in identifying dual-acting natural compounds that exhibit antiviral and anti-inflammatory activities.

Authors: Joshua A Jackman, Astghik Hakobyan, Rafayela Grigoryan, Roza Izmailyan, Charles C Elrod, Hovakim Zakaryan

Date Published: 25th Apr 2024

Publication Type: Journal

Flavonoid Library Screening Reveals Kaempferol as a Potential Antiviral Agent Against African Swine Fever Virus.

Abstract (Expand)

Naturally occurring plant flavonoids are a promising class of antiviral agents to inhibit African swine fever virus (ASFV), which causes highly fatal disease in pigs and is a major threat to the swine … industry. Currently known flavonoids with anti-ASFV activity demonstrate a wide range of antiviral mechanisms, which motivates exploration of new antiviral candidates within this class. The objective of this study was to determine whether other flavonoids may significantly inhibit ASFV infection <i>in vitro</i>. We performed a cell-based library screen of 90 flavonoids. Our screening method allowed us to track the development of virus-induced cytopathic effect by MTT in the presence of tested flavonoids. This screening method was shown to be robust for hit identification, with an average Z-factor of 0.683. We identified nine compounds that inhibit ASFV Ba71V strain in Vero cells. Among them, kaempferol was the most potent and exhibited dose-dependent inhibition, which occurred through a virostatic effect. Time-of-addition studies revealed that kaempferol acts on the entry and post-entry stages of the ASFV replication cycle and impairs viral protein and DNA synthesis. It was further identified that kaempferol induces autophagy in ASFV-infected Vero cells, which is related to its antiviral activity and could be partially abrogated by the addition of an autophagy inhibitor. Kaempferol also exhibited dose-dependent inhibition of a highly virulent ASFV Arm/07 isolate in porcine macrophages. Together, these findings support that kaempferol is a promising anti-ASFV agent and has a distinct antiviral mechanism compared to other anti-ASFV flavonoids.

Authors: Erik Arabyan, Astghik Hakobyan, Tamara Hakobyan, Rafaella Grigoryan, Roza Izmailyan, Aida Avetisyan, Zaven Karalyan, Joshua A Jackman, Fernando Ferreira, Charles C Elrod, Hovakim Zakaryan

Date Published: 21st Oct 2021

Publication Type: Journal

A new microtubule-stabilizing agent shows potent antiviral effects against African swine fever virus with no cytotoxicity.

Abstract (Expand)

African swine fever virus (ASFV) is the causal agent of a fatal disease of domestic swine for which no effective antiviral drugs are available. Recently, it has been shown that microtubule-targeting … agents hamper the infection cycle of different viruses. In this study, we conducted in silico screening against the colchicine binding site (CBS) of tubulin and found three new compounds with anti-ASFV activity. The most promising antiviral compound (6b) reduced ASFV replication in a dose-dependent manner (IC50 = 19.5 μM) with no cellular (CC50 &gt; 500 μM) and animal toxicity (up to 100 mg/kg). Results also revealed that compound 6b interfered with ASFV attachment, internalization and egress, with time-of-addition assays, showing that compound 6b has higher antiviral effects when added within 2-8 h post-infection. This compound significantly inhibited viral DNA replication and disrupted viral protein synthesis. Experiments with ASFV-infected porcine macrophages disclosed that antiviral effects of the compound 6b were similar to its effects in Vero cells. Tubulin polymerization assay and confocal microscopy demonstrated that compound 6b promoted tubulin polymerization, acting as a microtubule-stabilizing, rather than a destabilizing agent in cells. In conclusion, this work emphasizes the idea that microtubules can be targets for drug development against ASFV.

Authors: Samvel Sirakanyan, Erik Arabyan, Astghik Hakobyan, Tamara Hakobyan, Garri Chilingaryan, Harutyun Sahakyan, Arsen Sargsyan, Grigor Arakelov, Karen Nazaryan, Roza Izmailyan, Liana Abroyan, Zaven Karalyan, Elina Arakelova, Elmira Hakobyan, Anush Hovakimyan, Andre Serobian, Marco Neves, João Ferreira, Fernando Ferreira, Hovakim Zakaryan

Date Published: No date defined

Publication Type: Journal

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