The PARP inhibitor rucaparib blocks SARS-CoV-2 virus binding to cells and the immune reaction in models of COVID-19.

Background And Purpose: To date, there are limited options for severe Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by SARS-CoV-2 virus. As ADP-ribosylation events are involved in regulating the life cycle of coronaviruses and the inflammatory reactions of the host; we have, here, assessed the repurposing of registered PARP inhibitors for the treatment of COVID-19.

Experimental Approach: The effects of PARP inhibitors on virus uptake were assessed in cell-based experiments using multiple variants of SARS-CoV-2.

Snapshot study of canine distemper virus in Bangladesh with on-site PCR detection and nanopore sequencing.

Canine distemper virus (CDV) is a highly contagious virus that affects domestic and wild animals, causing severe illness with high mortality rates. Rapid monitoring and sequencing can provide valuable information about circulating CDV strains, which may foster effective vaccination strategies and the successful integration of these into conservation programs. During two site visits in Bangladesh in 2023, we tested a mobile, deployable genomic surveillance setup to explore the genetic diversity and phylogenetic patterns of locally circulating CDV strains.

Structural similarity of human papillomavirus E4 and polyomaviral VP4 exhibited by genomic analysis of the common kestrel (Falco tinnunculus) polyomavirus.

Polyomaviruses are widely distributed viruses of birds that may induce developmental deformities and internal organ disorders primarily in nestlings. In this study, polyomavirus sequence was detected in kidney and liver samples of a common kestrel (Falco tinnunculus) that succumbed at a rescue station in Hungary. The amplified 5025 nucleotide (nt) long genome contained the early (large and small T antigen, LTA and STA) and late (viral proteins, VP1, VP2, VP3) open reading frames (ORFs) typical for polyomaviruses.

Isolation and genome characterization of Lloviu virus from Italian Schreibers's bats.

Lloviu cuevavirus (LLOV) was the first identified member of Filoviridae family outside the Ebola and Marburgvirus genera. A massive die-off of Schreibers's bats (Miniopterus schreibersii) in the Iberian Peninsula in 2002 led to its initial discovery. Recent studies with recombinant and wild-type LLOV isolates confirmed the zoonotic nature of the virus in vitro.