27/04/17

Brazilian scientists break genetic code of Zika protein

zika virus, blue by cdc
Copyright: CDC/ Cynthia Goldsmith

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  • The protein copies viral RNA thousands of times until Zika can spread in the body
  • It is produced by flaviviruses which also cause yellow fever, dengue and hepatitis C
  • 针对丙型肝炎的药物可能成为针对寨卡病毒的治疗选择

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[SÃO PAULO] Brazilian researchers have described the three-dimensional structure of the NS5 protein responsible for the replication of寨卡病毒in infected cells — an important step towards developing an antiviral drug.

To do this, they stimulated a bacterium to produce large quantities of the NS5 protein, which were then purified and separated from the other substances produced by the bacteria. The researchers then transformed copies of the protein into crystals and mapped the spatial location of the 9,600 atoms that form its structure.

The study may be essential to developing new drugs with specific antiviral activity against Zika.

Guilherme Milanez, State University of Campinas

With this数据,他们建立了蛋白质所有原子结构组织的详细计算机模型。完整的发现是published inNature Communications上个月(3月27日)。

“ NS5分子结构的表征将使我们对每个分子的定义更精确,能够与蛋白质的特定区域联系并中断其活性。”这项研究的作者,得到了巴西研究基金会FAPESP的支持。

Protein NS5 is capable of copying the virus’ RNA thousands of times until Zika breaks through cell walls, spreading through the body.

The protein is produced by viruses of the genus flavivirus, which cause diseases such as yellow fever, dengue fever and hepatitis C. Because of its crucial role for virus replication in the human body, it has long been subject to research aimed at the development of drugs that can disrupt its activity.

主要的药品Oliva说,候选人是Sofosbovir,通常用于丙型肝炎 - 这可能很快成为针对寨卡病毒的治疗选择。

According toa paper published earlier this year in the journalScientific Reports, sofosbovir succeeded in halting the multiplication of the virus in tissue culture, which the study says reduces the damage caused by the Zika infection.

Biologist Guilherme Milanez, from the Institute of Biology at the State University of Campinas, believes the study may be “essential” to developing new drugs with specific antiviral activity against Zika.

“Because NS5 is produced by different flaviviruses, it is likely than a single drug [such as sofosbovir] will have antiviral activity against the dengue, hepatitis C and Zika viruses”, he pointed out.

However, Milanez warns that studies are still in the early stage of development and there is a long way to go until the final formulation of a drug.

The study, published inNature Communications,is supported by the Foundation for Research Support of the State of Sao Paulo (FAPESP), one of the donors of SciDev.Net.

This piece was originally published by the Latin America and Caribbean desk.