Viruses, Vol. 15, Pages 776: Host Cell Targets for Unconventional Antivirals against RNA Viruses

Viruses, Vol. 15, Pages 776: Host Cell Targets for Unconventional Antivirals against RNA Viruses Viruses doi: 10.3390/v15030776 Authors: Vicky C. Roa-Linares Manuela Escudero-Flórez Miguel Vicente-Manzanares Juan C. Gallego-Gómez The recent COVID-19 crisis has highlighted the importance of RNA-based viruses. The most prominent members of this group are SARS-CoV-2 (coronavirus), HIV (human immunodeficiency virus), EBOV (Ebola virus), DENV (dengue virus), HCV (hepatitis C virus), ZIKV (Zika virus), CHIKV (chikungunya virus), and influenza A virus. With the exception of retroviruses which produce reverse transcriptase, the majority of RNA viruses encode RNA-dependent RNA polymerases which do not include molecular proofreading tools, underlying the high mutation capacity of these viruses as they multiply in the host cells. Together with their ability to manipulate the immune system of the host in different ways, their high mutation frequency poses a challenge to develop effective and durable vaccination and/or treatments. Consequently, the use of antiviral targeting agents, while an important part of the therapeutic strategy against infection, may lead to the selection of drug-resistant variants. The crucial role of the host cell replicative and processing machinery is essential for the replicative cycle of the viruses and has driven attention to the potential use of drugs directed to the host machinery as therapeutic alternatives to treat viral infections. In thi...
Source: Viruses - Category: Virology Authors: Tags: Review Source Type: research