Structure-Based Antiviral Drugs and Vaccine Design

A special issue of Viruses (ISSN 1999-4915). This special issue belongs to the section "Viral Immunology, Vaccines, and Antivirals".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 April 2025 | Viewed by 973

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
School of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE, USA
Interests: viral entry and antiviral entry; viral vaccines; filoviruses; retroviruses
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

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Guest Editor
Cell and Molecular Biology Program, University of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg, MS 39406, USA
Interests: flavivirus; mosquito transmitted virus; antiviral; vaccine; viral pathogenesis
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue aims to promote studies on drug and vaccine design and development against viral diseases using structure-based approaches including AI-powered technologies. Certainly, it is more rational to utilize their structural relations for designs such as between receptors and ligands or antigens and antibodies. In recent years, AI-incorporated structure-based designing programs have significantly enhanced design efficiency and effectiveness. We would like to encourage and publish these data by using innovative technologies in antiviral therapeutics and preventive vaccines. The articles will be included in basic research in vitro, in vivo, and clinical studies.

Dr. Shi-hua Xiang
Prof. Dr. Fengwei Bai
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • antiviral
  • structure based
  • AI-powered
  • drug design
  • vaccine design

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

12 pages, 5706 KiB  
Article
Identification of Benzothiophene-Derived Inhibitors of Flaviviruses by Targeting RNA-Dependent RNA Polymerase
by Leah Liu Wang, Shazeed-Ul Karim, Aidan Hand, Ryan Brunkhorst, Mackenna Petersen, Sarah Altman, Yi Liu, Luwen Zhang, Fengwei Bai and Shi-Hua Xiang
Viruses 2025, 17(2), 145; https://doi.org/10.3390/v17020145 - 23 Jan 2025
Viewed by 692
Abstract
Flaviviruses such as Dengue, West Nile, and Zika viruses are mosquito-borne RNA viruses that can cause serious diseases in humans. To develop effective drugs for treating these viruses’ infections, we create a new approach for developing common or shared drugs that may work [...] Read more.
Flaviviruses such as Dengue, West Nile, and Zika viruses are mosquito-borne RNA viruses that can cause serious diseases in humans. To develop effective drugs for treating these viruses’ infections, we create a new approach for developing common or shared drugs that may work for several different viral species of flaviviruses. It is based on the conserved RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp), which is the key enzyme for viral replication. We built up a common structure of RdRps (POLcon) from their consensus sequence. A conserved Triple-D structural motif was identified at the active site of POLcon that has been used for virtual compound screening. We have identified three inhibitors that have potent activities against Dengue, West Nile, and Zika viruses. All these three inhibitors are Benzothiophene derivatives. This is the first report of Benzothiophene-derived compounds as inhibitors for flaviviruses. Furthermore, our approach has provided a proof-of-concept that it is feasible to identify shared drugs for several different viral species of flaviviruses. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Structure-Based Antiviral Drugs and Vaccine Design)
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