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Review
. 2018 Oct 30;10(11):593.
doi: 10.3390/v10110593.

Research Models and Tools for the Identification of Antivirals and Therapeutics against Zika Virus Infection

Marco P Alves  1   2 , Nathalie J Vielle  3   4   5 , Volker Thiel  6   7 , Stephanie Pfaender  8   9
Affiliations
Review

Research Models and Tools for the Identification of Antivirals and Therapeutics against Zika Virus Infection

Marco P Alves et al. Viruses. .

Abstract

Zika virus recently re-emerged and caused global outbreaks mainly in Central Africa, Southeast Asia, the Pacific Islands and in Central and South America. Even though there is a declining trend, the virus continues to spread throughout different geographical regions of the world. Since its re-emergence in 2015, massive advances have been made regarding our understanding of clinical manifestations, epidemiology, genetic diversity, genomic structure and potential therapeutic intervention strategies. Nevertheless, treatment remains a challenge as there is no licensed effective therapy available. This review focuses on the recent advances regarding research models, as well as available experimental tools that can be used for the identification and characterization of potential antiviral targets and therapeutic intervention strategies.

Keywords: Zika virus; antivirals; research models and tools; therapeutics.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Intervention strategies to interfere with the different stages of the viral replication cycle. (*) direct-acting antivirals; (**) host-targeting antiviral intervention strategies. RdRp: RNA-dependent RNA polymerase, MT: methyltransferase.
Figure 2
Figure 2
In vitro systems and screening approaches used for antiviral compound development against ZIKV. The text highlighted in green and red indicates advantages and limitations, respectively. PSCs: pluripotent stem cells, HTS: high-throughput screening, VYR: virus yield reduction, CPE: cytopathic effect.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Overview of the currently available in vivo models for the study of ZIKV pathogenesis and for possible antiviral approaches. The text highlighted in green and red indicates advantages and limitations, respectively.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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