Antiviral Activity of Umifenovir In Vitro against a Broad Spectrum of Coronaviruses, Including the Novel SARS-CoV-2 Virus

Viruses

Ravil Khamitov¹  Ekaterina Korchevaya²  Evgeny Faizuloev²  Nadezhda Kartashova²  Svetlana Loginova²  Irina Leneva²  Ekaterina Glubokova²  Veronika Shchukina²  Artem Poromov²  Anastasiia Gracheva²  Olga Borisova²  Anna Shtro³ 

[1] International Biotechnology Center IBC “GENERIUM”, Volginsky Village, Petushinsky District, 601125 Vladimir, Russia;Mechnikov Research Institute of Vaccines and Sera, 105064 Moscow, Russia;Smorodintsev Research Institute of Influenza, 197376 Saint-Petersburg, Russia;

关键词: coronaviruses;    SARS-CoV;    SARS-CoV-2;    umifenovir;    antiviral activity;   

DOI  :  10.3390/v13081665

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

An escalating pandemic of the novel SARS-CoV-2 virus is impacting global health, and effective antivirals are needed. Umifenovir (Arbidol) is an indole-derivative molecule, licensed in Russia and China for prophylaxis and treatment of influenza and other respiratory viral infections. It has been shown that umifenovir has broad spectrum activity against different viruses. We evaluated the sensitivity of different coronaviruses, including the novel SARS-CoV-2 virus, to umifenovir using in vitro assays. Using a plaque assay, we revealed an antiviral effect of umifenovir against seasonal HCoV-229E and HCoV-OC43 coronaviruses in Vero E6 cells, with estimated 50% effective concentrations (EC50) of 10.0 ± 0.5 µM and 9.0 ± 0.4 µM, respectively. Umifenovir at 90 µM significantly suppressed plaque formation in CMK-AH-1 cells infected with SARS-CoV. Umifenovir also inhibited the replication of SARS-CoV-2 virus, with EC50 values ranging from 15.37 ± 3.6 to 28.0 ± 1.0 µM. In addition, 21–36 µM of umifenovir significantly suppressed SARS-CoV-2 virus titers (≥2 log TCID50/mL) in the first 24 h after infection. Repurposing of antiviral drugs is very helpful in fighting COVID-19. A safe, pan-antiviral drug such as umifenovir could be extremely beneficial in combating the early stages of a viral pandemic.

【 授权许可】

Unknown