Structure-based discovery of thiosemicarbazones as SARS-CoV-2 main protease inhibitors.

Discovery of novel SARS-CoV-2 main protease (M) inhibitors using a structure-based drug discovery strategy. Virtual screening employing covalent and noncovalent docking was performed to discover M inhibitors, which were subsequently evaluated in biochemical and cellular assays. 91 virtual hits were selected for biochemical assays, and four were confirmed as reversible inhibitors of SARS CoV-2 M with IC values of 0.

In vitro tripanocidal effect of 1,8-dioxooctahydroxanthenes (xanthenodiones) and tetraketones and improvement of cardiac parameters in vivo.

Objective: Trypanosoma cruzi infection affects millions of people worldwide, and the drugs available for its treatment have limited efficacy. 1,8-Dioxooctahydroxanthenes and tetraketones are compounds with important biological applications. The aim of this study was to assess the trypanocidal and inflammatory activities of nine 1,8-dioxooctahydroxanthenes (1-9) and three tetraketones (10-12).

Xanthenedione (and intermediates involved in their synthesis) inhibit Zika virus migration to the central nervous system in murine neonatal models.

Zika Virus (ZIKV), an arbovirus that belongs to the Flaviviridae family, has become a global concern since its outbreak in the Americas in 2015. With symptoms similar to other Flavivirus as Dengue and Yellow Fever viruses, infections by ZIKV have also been related to several neurological complications such as microcephaly in newborns and Guillain-Barre syndrome. Considering the high prevalence of ZIKV infection in certain areas, the risks that the virus poses to fetal brain development, and the fact that there is no vaccine or specific prophylaxis available, an effective treatment capable of preventing the infection is of potential interest.

Potential Antivirals: Natural Products Targeting Replication Enzymes of Dengue and Chikungunya Viruses.

Dengue virus (DENV) and chikungunya virus (CHIKV) are reemergent arboviruses that are transmitted by mosquitoes of the Aedes genus. During the last several decades, these viruses have been responsible for millions of cases of infection and thousands of deaths worldwide. Therefore, several investigations were conducted over the past few years to find antiviral compounds for the treatment of DENV and CHIKV infections.

Natural products as source of potential dengue antivirals.

Dengue is a neglected disease responsible for 22,000 deaths each year in areas where it is endemic. To date, there is no clinically approved dengue vaccine or antiviral for human beings, even though there have been great efforts to accomplish these goals. Several approaches have been used in the search for dengue antivirals such as screening of compounds against dengue virus enzymes and structure-based computational discovery.