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Braunschweig. New broad-spectrum antiviral agents are considered a crucial contribution to pandemic preparedness. A project led by Alexander Titz, Professor of Organic and Pharmaceutical Chemistry at Saarland University, and Christian Sieben, head of a research group at the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research in Braunschweig, aims to fill a previously missing component in pandemic preparedness by developing such agents.
An Innovative Platform for Virus Prevention
The researchers aim to block a crucial initial step in viral infection: the docking of viruses to sugar molecules on the cell surface. This fundamental mechanism is shared among various viruses, making it an ideal target for creating broad-spectrum antiviral drugs. Supported with nearly one million euros from the Volkswagen Foundation, this project seeks to develop inhibitors against respiratory viruses and other pathogens with pandemic potential, including Influenza A, SARS-CoV-2, and zoonotic agents that can jump from animals to humans.
Replicating Nature’s Defense
The teams are employing an innovative strategy by designing molecules known as sialomimetics, which mimic the natural sugar structures on the surface of human cells. This sugary coating, also referred to as the glycocalyx, plays a pivotal role in the infection process of many viruses. Sialic acids on the cellular surface function as crucial anchoring points for viruses like influenza and coronaviruses.
The researchers aim to interfere with this binding process by developing molecules that adhere more robustly to viral proteins than the natural sugar chains. By obstructing the binding proteins of the viruses, they can effectively disrupt the connection between the virus and the cell. In the first funding phase from the Volkswagen Foundation, the teams have already identified promising drug candidates that they are now working to optimize further.
A Key to Broad-Spectrum Therapies
“Currently, there are only a few specific medications available against viruses. There are no broad-spectrum antibiotics for viral infections,” says Prof. Alexander Titz, who also leads a research group at the Helmholtz Institute for Pharmaceutical Research in Saarland in collaboration with the Helmholtz Centre. “We aim to block the initial step of infection across multiple viruses simultaneously. This is crucial for developing broad-spectrum therapies.”
“Thanks to the renewed support from the Volkswagen Foundation, we can make significant progress in developing new antiviral agents as well as expand our knowledge about the interaction between viruses and human cells,” adds Prof. Christian Sieben, head of the “Nano-infection Biology” research group at HZI. “Our goal is to create a drug platform that can be utilized not only for influenza and coronaviruses but also for future pandemics involving yet unknown viruses.”
