Cellular protein identified as possible drug target to combat Lassa hemorrhagic fever Experimental approach could uncover new treatment options for the virus, which is highly prevalent in Western Africa.
July 20, 2022
La Jolla, CA Scripps Research in collaboration with the La Jolla Institute for Immunology have used a novel strategy to identify and study host cell proteins that contribute to multiplication of Lassa virus, a virus that causes a severe hemorrhagic fever disease. The discovery could lead to potential new drug targets for treating the disease.
Lassa virus (LASV) is highly prevalent in Western Africa. The virus is typically transmitted to humans via contact with aerosols or the droppings and secretions of infected rodents. Infected individuals can develop Lassa fever (LF), a hemorrhagic fever disease associated with high morbidity and mortality. Notably, many LF survivors experience long-term side effects including sensory-neural hearing loss. Other than off-label use of ribavirin which is of limited and controversial efficacy there are no treatments for LF, nor any licensed vaccines.
The research, led by Juan Carlos de la Torre, PhD, of Scripps Research, in collaboration with the laboratory of Erica Ollmann Saphire, PhD, at La Jolla Institute for Immunology, was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) on July 18, 2022.
To identify host cell proteins that contribute to LASV replication, the researchers implemented a new strategy that combined proximity proteomics with the use of a non-infectious cell-based LASV minigenome system that recreates the molecular processes involved in LASV replication. Proximity proteomics fuses a protein of interest to an enzyme that will label nearby proteins with a chemical tag, which facilitates their identification.
Viruses dont operate in isolation, says Saphire. They hijack and require molecules of the cell for their own purposes.
De la Torre compares the process to the way social networks can leave traces of interactions and provide information about how people might relate to one another, for example, whether two users are located in the same city or household, or if they are family members or acquaintances.
Just as with social media users, some interactions between proteins make sense, and you can infer relationships between the two, he says. Other protein interactions are casual or accidental and don't mean anything, but, for many others, further investigation is required to uncover their biological implications.
With this combined approach, they were able to identify 42 cellular proteins likely to play a role in the replication and spread of LASV. One of the identified host proteins GSPT1 might be a potential drug target, as CC-90009, a drug that specifically targets and degrades GSPT1, exhibited antiviral activity against LASV without cytotoxicity. CC-90009 is currently in phase 1 clinical development for the treatment of acute myeloid leukemia, raising the possibility of its repurposing as an antiviral against LASV.
De la Torre notes that because this method of identifying viral-host cell protein interactions of interest can be done without the live, infectious LASV, this strategy does not require a biosafety level 4 (BSL4) lab, which are expensive to operate.
We think the experimental approach we used could be a rubric for any other highly pathogenic virus , he says. You would have to change the components, but conceptually, the same approach could potentially be applied with any highly pathogenic virus requiring BSL4.
Furthermore, says de la Torre, the identification of host cell proteins that are required for LASV replication can facilitate the repurposing of drugs currently being used for other indications as antivirals against LASV.
This provides an advantage, he says, since diseases like Ebola and Lassa are restricted to certain geographical areas, making it unlikely pharmaceutical companies will develop drugs specifically for them. Notably, Lassa and Ebola share a number of host cell proteins, which may facilitate the development of broad-spectrum antivirals by targeting host factors used by these two viruses.
He notes that a better treatment for LASV could also have an impact outside of Western Africa, as increased traveling to and from LASV endemic regions has resulted in the importation of LF cases into metropolitan areas outside Western Africa.
People doing humanitarian aid in Western Africa, whether clinical work or social work, can get exposed, return to their home and then develop symptoms, he says. What happens in many countries outside of Western Africa is that doctors who are not familiar with LF assume the disease is malaria and treat for that. When that doesn't work, by the time they realize what the disease is, it's usually too late.
Jingru Fang, Haydar Witwit, George Tsaprailis, and Gogce Crynen of Scripps Research are co-contributing authors of Proximity interactome analysis of Lassa polymerase reveals eRF3a/GSPT1 as a druggable target for host-directed antivirals.
This research was supported by institutional 423 funds of La Jolla Institute of Immunology and NIH/NIAID grants AI125626 and AI128556.
Infectious Diseases de la Torre, Juan Carlos
Most recent headlines
06/10/2025
France T l visions, France's leading broadcaster, has received the 2025 EBU ...
04/09/2025
Monumental Sports & Entertainment (MSE), in collaboration with Dalet, has been a...
30/08/2025
WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission has adopted its FY 2025 Regulatory Fees Order that establishes the regulatory fee rates for the broadcast stati...
29/08/2025
Australian Red Cross and SBS launch training to help workplaces in the fight aga...
29/08/2025
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Sp...
29/08/2025
L3Harris Technologies has concentrated decades of expertise across the entire enterprise to develop affordable and reliable best-of-breed solutions to rapidly c...
29/08/2025
BURBANK, Calif. The CW Network and the Pac-12 Conference have announced a new media rights deal that will extend their broadcast partnership beginning with the ...
29/08/2025
NEW YORK Gracenote has released a new analysis of its global video dataset showing that the number of FAST channels grew nearly 14% from Q1 2025 and 76% since 2...
29/08/2025
SAN JOSE, Calif. Harmonic has announced a series of improvements to its live sports streaming solution that the company said will improve fan engagement, protec...
29/08/2025
NEW YORK and LOS ANGELES Fox Corp. and YouTube TV last night announced a renewal of the full portfolio of Fox networks, including Fox News Channel, Fox Business...
29/08/2025
Budapest, Hungary, August 2025 - The integration of Microsoft Teams Rooms (MTR) with Lightware's Taurus universal matrix switchers delivers a new level of f...
29/08/2025
Frequency, the engine behind many of the world's best-known streaming television channels, today announced it will launch Studio Live, a next-generation uni...
29/08/2025
In an era when AI and cyber resilience are essential, Scality will mark the 10th anniversary of Scality Day on October 16, 2025 in Paris. This flagship global e...
29/08/2025
Disguise's In-House Creative and Technical Teams Pre-Visualised, Programmed and Delivered Content for the Experience, All Powered by EX 3+
Technology solu...
29/08/2025
Disguise will be demonstrating the latest workflows for TV, film and live events on a number of partner booths at the show
Disguise, the industry-leading tech...
29/08/2025
STOCKHOLM, Sweden Accedo will showcase Accedo Compose, its AI agent-powered modular orchestration layer that assists streaming providers in transitioning client...
29/08/2025
LOS ANGELES Cineverse has announced that it is working with Xperi to bring four of its streaming channels to automobiles for the first time as part of the DTS A...
29/08/2025
DALLAS & ATLANTA Gray Media has announced an agreement with the sports streaming service Victory+ to simulcast 17 Dallas Stars NHL games in 15 television market...
29/08/2025
NEW YORK AND CULVER CITY Comcast NBCUniversal and Amazon have announced new and extended distribution agreements that will expand the content available on their...
29/08/2025
FOOTHILL RANCH, Calif. RED Digital Cinema will feature its Cine-Broadcast Module supporting live broadcast workflows during IBC2025, Sept. 12-15, at the RAI Ams...
29/08/2025
29 Aug 2025
Kyivstar Rings Opening Bell at Nasdaq Marking Landmark Listing and ...
29/08/2025
More than half of all NFL games live on Sky for the first timeFriday 29 August 2025
Sky Sports has announced a new three-year deal with the NFL, extending its ...
29/08/2025
Back to All News
RIV4LRIES: The Trailer of the New Series With Samuele Carrino ...
29/08/2025
Get ready for an inspiring and emotional insight into the world of competitive Irish dancing with My Story: Tomi Champion of the World airing on RT 2 this monda...
29/08/2025
RT has today announced that David McCullagh is to be the new presenter of RT Radio 1's flagship Today programme, which airs every weekday at 10am, replaci...
28/08/2025
By Kristin Feeley, Director, Documentary Film & Artist Programs
If you want to tell untold stories, if you want to give voice to the voiceless, you've got ...
28/08/2025
Directed by Steven Bognar and Julia Reichert, Sundance Institute-supported Amer...
28/08/2025
Corridos have been a cornerstone of M sica Mexicana for generations, telling stories rooted in everyday life. Now, a new chapter is taking shape: motivational c...
28/08/2025
Los corridos han sido un pilar de la M sica Mexicana durante generaciones, contando historias enraizadas en la vida cotidiana. Ahora, un nuevo cap tulo est tom...
28/08/2025
Earlier this month, we promised our Verano Forever party would bring the heat, a...
28/08/2025
L3Harris will provide the Polish F-16V fleet with the Viper Shield electronic warfare system as part of an upgrade program....
28/08/2025
Bilbao, August 26, 2025 - AgileTV, an international television and video technol...
28/08/2025
Ken Wilkinson is an Emmy Awards nominated New York audio engineer who specialises in production sound mixing for film, commercial, episodic and documentary work...
28/08/2025
NEW YORK FuboTV today announced that it will launch Fubo Sports, a skinny bundle that focuses on sports with a subscription price of $56 monthly....
28/08/2025
NEVADA City, Calif. At IBC2025, Sept. 12-15 at the RAI Amsterdam, Telestream will debut its new Global Ingest strategy, introducing a next-generation ingest arc...
28/08/2025
Dr. Rhoda Bernard Releases Groundbreaking Debut Book on Accessible Arts Educatio...
28/08/2025
TAG Video Systems, the leader in software-based IP end-to-end workflow monitoring, deep probing, and real-time visualization, has named Oliver Gappa as Sales Di...
28/08/2025
AI-based voice enhancement will be among a series of innovations making their IBC 2025 debut on the DHD stand B46 in Hall 8 at the RAI Amsterdam Convention Cent...
28/08/2025
Telef nica Servicios Audiovisuales (TSA), the leading system integrator and service provider in the media sector in Spain, with the support of Appear, the globa...
28/08/2025
To fully immerse sailing fans in the world's biggest offshore yacht race, production company, Optical Media turned to LiveU's On-site Production solutio...
28/08/2025
Working with Calrec on its most recent overhaul, radio and television broadcaster, WNED has migrated to a fully IP infrastructure with multiple Type R consoles,...
28/08/2025
Cleeng, the Subscriber Retention Management (SRM ) inventor, has unveiled Cleeng Pro, the first-ever direct-to-consumer (D2C) subscription management platform t...
28/08/2025
Zixi, the industry leader in live broadcast-quality video over IP, today announced that French media distribution platform OKAST has selected Zixi to enable rel...
28/08/2025
Solution offers a streamlined, speaker-free architecture to optimize integration with premium external loudspeakers and advanced loudness metering
Nixer Pro Au...
28/08/2025
Cinegy, the premier provider of software-defined television technology, has announced a strategic partnership with Vision One Touch Film Production Services L.L...
28/08/2025
Telestream, a global leader in media workflow technologies, will debut its new Global Ingest strategy at IBC2025, introducing a next-generation ingest architect...
28/08/2025
Tier 1 operator selects Broadpeak to power high-performance, unified CDN solution across Norway, Sweden and Finland
Broadpeak, a leader in streaming and moneti...
28/08/2025
Leading video software provider, Synamedia, today announced that 24 Frames Digital, one of India's leading live event streaming service providers, has chose...
28/08/2025
Meet VisualOn at IBC2025: See What's Next in AI-Powered Video Streaming Join VisualOn at IBC2025 and discover how our AI-driven Optimizer and advanced media...
Cellular protein identified as possible drug target to combat Lassa hemorrhagic fever Experimental approach could uncover new treatment options for the virus, which is highly prevalent in Western Africa.
