T-type calcium channels blockers inhibit HSV-2 infection at the late stage of genome replication.
Eur J Pharmacol 2020;
892:173782. [PMID:
33279521 DOI:
10.1016/j.ejphar.2020.173782]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2020] [Revised: 11/19/2020] [Accepted: 12/01/2020] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) is a highly contagious sexually transmitted virus. The increasing emergence of drug-resistant viral strains has highlighted the crucial need for the development of new anti-HSV-2 drugs with different mechanisms. Ion channels that govern a wide range of cellular functions represent attractive targets for viral manipulation. Here, we tried to identify novel compounds to suppress HSV-2 infection in vitro by screening a small library with ion channels modulators. We found that several T-type calcium channel blockers including benidipine, lercanidipine, lomerizine and mibefradil inhibited HSV-2 infection, while L-type calcium channel blockers nifedipine and nitrendipine showed no significant effect on HSV-2 infection. Furthermore, we found that benidipine exerted the antiviral effect by suppressing the expression of viral genes in the late stage of viral infection. In conclusion, our study suggested that T-type calcium channel blockers, which are clinically wide used, could effectively inhibit HSV-2 infection. These findings could shed light on the mechanism and pharmacological study for HSV-2 infection in the future.
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