Antiviral Activity of Thiazolide Derivatives Against Dengue Virus in Huh-7 Cell Line

Dengue is one of the main health problems worldwide with dramatic increases in reported cases in the last few decades. Now, dengue is a major threat to half of the world’s population and approximately 50 million infections occur every year.
The major aim of this study was to screen out different synthetic antiviral compounds against dengue virus. As treatments used for dengue virus infections are nonspecific and effectless, it is necessary to find specific antiviral compounds that may be helpful in the treatment of dengue fever. In cell culture models, thiazolides are active against anaerobic bacteria, protozoa, and a range of viruses.
Samples from positive dengue fever patients were included in the study. For dengue serotype-2, serum samples were further confirmed by serotyping protocol.
After toxicological analysis, a sharp significant antiviral response was shown by compounds A and B decreasing the viral titer of serotype 2 as 46% and 53%, respectively. A greater antiviral activity was indicated by compound “B” against NS3 gene as compared to compound “A”. Against NS3 gene, a comparable antiviral activity was observed for compounds “A” and “B”.
From our results, it can be concluded that compounds A and B (Thiazolides) as dengue antiviral drugs can reduce viral load in patients if their inhibitory effects are reproduced in vivo. To identify the specific active ingredients, further studies are required by using various techniques to determine the efficacy of these compounds in animal model.