Vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) as a paradigm for predicting antiviral activity against Ebola virus (EBOV)

There are at present no antivirals available which have beenformally licensed for clinical use for the treatment of Ebolavirus (EBOV) infections in humans. The most advanced to beapproved for this purpose is favipiravir (T-705), a viral RNApolymerase inhibitor. Under consideration are BCX4430, alsoa viral RNA polymerase inhibitor, and 3-deazaneplanocin Aand various other S-adenosylhomocysteine (SAH) hydrolaseinhibitors. A number of compounds which have been approvedfor other purposes seem to interact with the cell entry ofEBOV. Some compounds like pyrazofurin have been found tobe exquisitely potent inhibitors of vesicular stomatitis virus(VSV). VSV belongs to the rhabdoviridae, a family closelyrelated to the family of the filoviridae to which EBOV andMarburg virus belong. VSV, unlike EBOV and Marburg viruswhich require biosafety level 4, can be handled in conventionalsafety conditions.Key words: Ebola virus (EBOV); vesicular stomatitis virus(VSV); rhabdoviridae; filoviridae; favipiravir; BCX4430;pyrazofurin; SAH hydrolase