Caffeic Acid Has Antiviral Activity against Ilhéus Virus In Vitro.
Marielena Vogel SaivishCarolina Colombelli PaccaVivaldo Gomes da CostaGabriela De Lima MenezesRoosevelt Alves Da SilvaLiliane NeboGislaine Celestino Dutra da SilvaBruno Henrique Gonçalves de Aguiar MilhimIgor da Silva TeixeiraTiago HenriqueNatalia Franco Bueno MistrãoVictor Miranda HernandesNathalia ZiniAna Carolina de CarvalhoMarina Alves FontouraPaula RahalLívia SacchettoRafael Elias MarquesMauricio Lacerda NogueiraPublished in: Viruses (2023)
Ilhéus virus (ILHV) is a neglected mosquito-borne flavivirus. ILHV infection may lead to Ilhéus fever, an emerging febrile disease like dengue fever with the potential to evolve into a severe neurological disease characterized by meningoencephalitis; no specific treatments are available for this disease. This study assessed the antiviral properties of caffeic acid, an abundant component of plant-based food products that is also compatible with the socioeconomic limitations associated with this neglected infectious disease. The in vitro activity of caffeic acid on ILHV replication was investigated in Vero and A549 cell lines using plaque assays, quantitative RT-PCR, and immunofluorescence assays. We observed that 500 µM caffeic acid was virucidal against ILHV. Molecular docking indicated that caffeic acid might interact with an allosteric binding site on the envelope protein.