Coordination Compounds as Antivirals against Neglected Tropical Diseases.

Neglected tropical viral diseases are a burden to social and economic welfare being responsible for higher pathogen-related mortality rates and chronic debilitating patient conditions. Climatic changes have widened up the infectibility ratio of such diseases, with autochthonous transmission in formerly temperate-to-cold environments. The slow-paced development of potential vaccines followed by the inexistence of antiviral drugs for such diseases considerably worsens the situation.

What is holding back the development of antiviral metallodrugs? A literature overview and implications for SARS-CoV-2 therapeutics and future viral outbreaks.

In light of the Covid-19 outbreak, this review brings together historical and current literature efforts towards the development of antiviral metallodrugs. Classical compounds such as CTC-96 and auranofin are discussed in depth, as pillars for future metallodrug development. From the recent literature, both cell-based results and biophysical assays against potential viral biomolecule targets are summarized here.