Peptide Drug Aimed at Two Bioterror Agents

Filed in archive Drugs, Vaccines and Therapeutics , Genomics, Proteomics and Bioinformatics , Microbiology on December 21, 2007

Cornell researchers have developed a drug candidate against potential bioterror agents, Hendra and Nipah viruses. The compound is a peptide (protein) related to a parainfluenza virus that appeared to block "pseudo" Hendra and Nipah viruses from entering and infecting human cells, and thus preventing an outbreak.

... Drs. Porotto and Moscona knew that when the receptor-binding molecule on the virus-simply called "G"-binds to the surface of the cell, it activates a special "fusion protein." This fusion molecule has to then undergo some shape changes to turn itself into a six-helix bundle. Once that's done, it helps the virus fuse with, and enter, the cell, Dr. Porotto explains.

However, the Weill Cornell team discovered that a peptide specific to the parainfluenza virus "fusion protein" ("F") can inhibit this shape-changing step-stopping fusion cold.

"Surprisingly, this parainfluenza F-peptide turned out to be even more effective at inhibiting Hendra virus fusion than peptides derived from the Hendra virus itself," Dr. Moscona says. "It also appears to do much the same thing with the Nipah virus, inhibiting fusion there, too."

Experiments on monkey cells have shown that the peptide effectively blocked infection with both live Hendra and Nipah. The findings have been published recently in the Journal of Virology.

Source: Weill Cornell Medical College