News – Page 6 – OpenZika

The green tea molecule EGCG inhibits Zika virus entry

July 28, 2016/0 Comments/in News /by melina

During ZIKV the outbreak in Brazil it was observed an increase of almost 20 times the number of reported cases of microcephaly in newborn babies. There is no vaccine or approved drug available for the treatment and prevention of infections by this virus. EGCG, a polyphenol present in green tea has been shown to have an antiviral activity for many viruses. In view of the need for the development of a drug against a Brazilian strain of ZIKV, we assessed the effect of EGCG on ZIKV entry in Vero E6 cells. The drug was capable of inhibiting the virus entry by at least 1-log (>90%) at higher concentrations (>100 μM). The pre-treatment of cells with EGCG did not show any effect on virus attachment. This is the first study to demonstrate the effect of EGCG on ZIKV indicating that this drug might be possibility to be used for prevention of Zika virus infections.

Zika infection may be worse in people already exposed to a common virus

July 18, 2016/0 Comments/in News /by melina

A previous encounter with a disease that is rampant across Latin America could leave people more vulnerable to the Zika virus. Antibodies to dengue virus, a relative of Zika, can interfere with the immune system’s response to Zika and boost the virus’s ability to replicate, according to work in two independent labs. That may help explain why the complications of Zika virus infections have been more severe in South and Central America than in previous epidemics elsewhere.

Read more

July 18, 2016/0 Comments/in News /by carolina

OpenZika Principal Investigator, Dr. Carolina Horta Andrade, has presented some early results of OpenZika project, as well as the results obtained for Dengue drug discovery project: “Bioinformatics and Cheminformatics Approaches to discover new active compounds for Dengue and Zika viruses”, in the 70th Congress of Federal University of Bahia, in Salvador, in 16/07/2016.

Structural basis of potent Zika-dengue virus antibody cross-neutralization.

July 14, 2016/0 Comments/in News /by melina

Zika virus is related to dengue virus, and we report here that a category of antibodies isolated from dengue patients and targeting a conformational epitope potently neutralize Zika virus. The crystal structure of two of these antibodies in complex with the envelope protein of Zika virus reveals the details of a conserved epitope, which is also the site of interaction of the envelope protein dimer with the precursor prM protein during virus maturation. Comparison of the Zika and dengue virus immunocomplexes provides a lead for rational, epitope-focused design of a universal vaccine capable of eliciting potent cross-neutralizing antibodies to protect against Zika and dengue viruses simultaneously.

Read more

Extended Surface for Membrane Association in Zika Virus NS1 Structure

July 14, 2016/0 Comments/in News /by melina

A high-resolution (1.89 Å) crystal structure of NS1 protein is available in Protein Data Bank .

Structure of the NS3 helicase from Zika virus (French Polynesia strain)

July 14, 2016/0 Comments/in News /by melina

Zika virus has emerged as a pathogen of major health concern. Here, we present a high-resolution (1.62-Å) crystal structure of the RNA helicase from the French Polynesia strain. The structure is similar to that of the RNA helicase from Dengue virus, with variability in the conformations of loops typically involved in binding ATP and RNA. We identify druggable ‘hotspots’ that are well suited for in silico and/or fragment-based high-throughput drug discovery.

Read more

Crystal structure of Zika virus NS2B-NS3 protease in complex with a boronate inhibitor

July 14, 2016/0 Comments/in News /by melina

In order to elucidate the molecular basis of this hyper-activity, and to provide a starting point for structure-based drug design efforts, we have crystallized ZIKV NS2B-NS3^pro in the closed form and determined its X-ray structure at 2.7 Å resolution.

A Method to Detect Zika-Blocking Bacteria

July 6, 2016/0 Comments/in News /by melina

A growing body of research suggests infections with the Wolbachia bacterium can prevent mosquitoes from transmitting Zika and other viruses. Researchers from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and colleagues reported today (July 1) in Scientific Reports that Wolbachia can reduce the likelihood that Aedes aegypti mosquitoes will contract Zika from infected mice. And a team from QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute in Brisbane, Australia, and colleagues yesterday (June 30) reported a method for detecting the bacterium’s presence in mosquitoes using near-infrared spectroscopy, in PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases.

“Our findings are complementary to results described earlier in the month in Cell Host & Microbe by our colleagues with [Brazil’s Oswaldo Cruz Foundation], which is really exciting and really promising,” Matthew Aliota of University of Wisconsin–Madison, coauthor of the Scientific Reports study, said in a statement, referring to a study published in May.

Read more

France’s Sanofi partners U.S. Army to speed up Zika vaccine

July 6, 2016/0 Comments/in News /by melina

French drugmaker Sanofi said on Wednesday it had struck a research and development deal with the U.S. Army to speed up the development of a vaccine against the mosquito-borne Zika virus.

Sanofi is the only major drugmaker working on a vaccine against Zika, which has been linked to birth defects and neurological disorders, although more than a dozen smaller biotech firms and other groups are also active in the field.

The tie-up with the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research (WRAIR) in the United States gives Sanofi access to a promising new vaccine, made from inactivated virus, that has already produced impressive results in mice.

The vaccine is one of the furthest advanced in development and could be ready for testing on humans in October.

Sex May Spread Zika Virus More Often Than Researchers Suspected

July 5, 2016/0 Comments/in News /by melina

An outbreak of the Zika virus in the continental United States could begin any day now. But while there is plenty of discussion about mosquito bites, some researchers are beginning to worry more about the other known transmission route: sex.

Intimate contact may account for more Zika infections than previously suspected, these experts say.

The evidence is still emerging, and recent findings are hotly disputed. All experts agree that mosquitoes are the epidemic’s main driver.

But two reports now suggest that women in Latin America are much more likely to be infected than men, although both are presumed to be equally exposed to mosquitoes.

Read more