Post-exposure therapy of filovirus infections

Gary Wong; Xiangguo Qiu; Gene G Olinger; Gary P Kobinger

doi:10.1016/j.tim.2014.04.002

Post-exposure therapy of filovirus infections

Trends Microbiol. 2014 Aug;22(8):456-63. doi: 10.1016/j.tim.2014.04.002. Epub 2014 Apr 30.

Authors

Gary Wong¹, Xiangguo Qiu², Gene G Olinger³, Gary P Kobinger⁴

Affiliations

¹ Special Pathogens Program, National Microbiology Laboratory, Public Health Agency of Canada, Winnipeg, MB, Canada; Department of Medical Microbiology, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB, Canada.
² Special Pathogens Program, National Microbiology Laboratory, Public Health Agency of Canada, Winnipeg, MB, Canada.
³ Integrated Research Facility, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Frederick, MD, USA.
⁴ Special Pathogens Program, National Microbiology Laboratory, Public Health Agency of Canada, Winnipeg, MB, Canada; Department of Medical Microbiology, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB, Canada; Department of Immunology, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB, Canada; Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA. Electronic address: gary.kobinger@phac-aspc.gc.ca.

PMID: 24794572
DOI: 10.1016/j.tim.2014.04.002

Abstract

Filovirus infections cause fatal hemorrhagic fever characterized by the initial onset of general symptoms before rapid progression to severe disease; the most virulent species can cause death to susceptible hosts within 10 days after the appearance of symptoms. Before the advent of monoclonal antibody (mAb) therapy, infection of nonhuman primates (NHPs) with the most virulent filovirus species was fatal if interventions were not administered within minutes. A novel nucleoside analogue, BCX4430, has since been shown to also demonstrate protective efficacy with a delayed treatment start. This review summarizes and evaluates the potential of current experimental candidates for treating filovirus disease with regard to their feasibility and use in the clinic, and assesses the most promising strategies towards the future development of a pan-filovirus medical countermeasure.

Keywords: Ebola; Marburg; filovirus; immunotherapy; monoclonal antibodies; post-exposure.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Review

MeSH terms

Animals
Antibodies, Monoclonal / therapeutic use
Antibodies, Viral / therapeutic use
Antiviral Agents / therapeutic use
Biological Products / therapeutic use
Disease Models, Animal
Filoviridae Infections / therapy*
Post-Exposure Prophylaxis / methods*
Primates
Time Factors
Treatment Outcome

Substances

Antibodies, Monoclonal
Antibodies, Viral
Antiviral Agents
Biological Products

Grants and funding

Canadian Institutes of Health Research/Canada