Investigation of natural compounds with potential antiviral activity against Mayaro virus

• Grant number: 18/11599-4
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: November 01, 2018
• End date: October 31, 2019
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Medicine
• Principal Investigator: Carolina Colombelli Pacca
• Grantee: Ana Cristyna Saad Murad
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Medicina em São José do Rio Preto (FACERES). São José do Rio Preto , SP, Brazil

Abstract

In Brazil, more than 210 different species of arbovirus have been isolated, with 36 of them causing human diseases in a sporadic, endemic and/or epidemic form. In 2015, at least nine pathogenic arbovirus that cause diseases in humans circulated in Brazil, accounting for approximately 30% of all emerging infectious diseases in the last decade, among the main representatives is the Alphavírus Mayaro (MAYV). The Mayaro virus (MAYV) is an arbovirus of the genus Alphavirus, family Togaviridae, enzootic in South America, being kept in a wild cycle involving vertebrates and Haemagogus mosquitoes. Cases of MAYV are sporadic and occur in people with history of recent activities within or near forests, however the possibility of adaptation of MAYV to urban mosquitoes such as the Aedes aegypti, associated with the greater use of forest areas and the high Mobility of the population causes the MAYV to become a serious risk to public health. In addition to arbovirus infections generating significant costs to the Federal government, there is still no antiviral therapy specified for the treatment of these infections. Because of that, studies of specific antivirals become extremelly important for the attempt of a new approach in the inhibition of viral replication of this virus, therefore, this work aims to evaluate the cytotoxicity of 30 compounds (Acridonas and/or Chalconas) in the cultivation of MAYV in Vero E6 cells and perform a screening of the potential antiviral activity of these compounds in inhibiting the replication of the Mayan virus, in the expectation of finding synthetic or natural compounds, with potential antiviral activity against the Mayaro virus. (AU)