![]() ![]() “The Zika virus poses a global health threat,” said Anton Simeonov, Ph.D., NCATS scientific director. ![]() It also is associated with neurological diseases such as Guillain-Barré syndrome in infected adults. The virus is spread primarily through bites from infected Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, and in addition, can be transmitted from mother to child and through sexual contact. The Zika virus has been reported in 60 countries and territories worldwide currently, there are no vaccines or effective drug treatments. Infection by the Zika virus may be related to fetal microcephaly, an abnormally small head resulting from an underdeveloped and/or damaged brain. The NCATS screening effort builds on the initial research by JHU and FSU scientists, who discovered that the Zika virus infects brain cells early in development. ![]() NCATS’ work was a collaborative effort with Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, (JHU) and Florida State University, Tallahassee, (FSU), and the study results were published in the August 29 issue of Nature Medicine. CDK usually is involved in regulation of cellular processes as well as normal brain development, but the Zika virus can negatively affect this process. In addition, the researchers identified nine cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) inhibitors. Food and Drug Administration-approved drug for use in humans to treat worm infections. The compounds include emricasan, an investigational drug currently being evaluated in a clinical trial to reduce liver injury and fibrosis, and niclosamide, a U. Using NCATS’ drug repurposing screening robots, researchers identified two classes of compounds effective against Zika: one is antiviral, and the other prevents Zika-related brain cell death. NCATS is part of the National Institutes of Health. These compounds now can be studied by the broader research community to help combat the Zika public health crisis. Researchers at the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) recently identified compounds that potentially can be used to inhibit Zika virus replication and reduce its ability to kill brain cells. ![]() NCATS researcher dispenses zika virus into trays for compound screening. ![]()
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