Antiviral effect of sinefungin on in vitro growth of feline herpesvirus type 1

• Published in: Journal of antibiotics Vol. 72; no. 12; pp. 981 - 985
• Main Authors: Kuroda, Yudai, Yamagata, Haruka, Nemoto, Michiko, Inagaki, Kenji, Tamura, Takashi, Maeda, Ken
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 01.12.2019; Nature Publishing Group
• Subjects: 631/154/433; 692/308/153; Adenosine - analogs & derivatives; Adenosine - pharmacology; Adenosine - toxicity; Animals; Antibiotics; Antiviral agents; Antiviral Agents - pharmacology; Antiviral Agents - toxicity; Antiviral drugs; Bacteriology; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Bioorganic Chemistry; Calicivirus, Feline - drug effects; Cat Diseases - drug therapy; Cats; Cell Line; Coronavirus, Feline - drug effects; Cytotoxicity; DNA methylation; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; Experiments; Feline infectious peritonitis; Genomes; Herpes viruses; Herpesviridae Infections - drug therapy; Herpesviridae Infections - veterinary; Herpesvirus 1, Equid - drug effects; Herpesvirus 1, Suid - drug effects; Horses; Infections; Kidney - cytology; Kidney - virology; Kidneys; Life Sciences; Medicinal Chemistry; Microbiology; Organic Chemistry; Peritonitis; Respiratory diseases; Special Feature: Article; Toxicity; Toxicity Tests; Varicellovirus - drug effects; Viruses
• ISSN: 0021-8820; 1881-1469; 1881-1469
• DOI: 10.1038/s41429-019-0234-4

Feline herpesvirus type 1 (FHV-1) causes a potentially fatal disease in cats. Through the use of virus inhibition and cytotoxicity assays, sinefungin, a nucleoside antibiotic, was assessed for its potential to inhibit the growth of FHV-1. Sinefungin inhibited in vitro growth of FHV-1 most significantly over other animal viruses, such as feline infectious peritonitis virus, equine herpesvirus, pseudorabies virus and feline calicivirus. Our results revealed that sinefungin specifically suppressed the replication of FHV-1 after its adsorption to the host feline kidney cells in a dose-dependent manner without obvious cytotoxicity to the host cells. This antibiotic can potentially offer a highly effective treatment for animals infected with FHV-1, providing alternative medication to currently available antiviral therapies.