| Title | Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor fluoxetine inhibits replication of human enteroviruses B and D by targeting viral protein 2C. | ||
| Author | Ulferts, Rachel; van der Linden, Lonneke; Thibaut, Hendrik Jan; Lanke, Kjerstin H W; Leyssen, Pieter; Coutard, Bruno; De Palma, Armando M; Canard, Bruno; Neyts, Johan; van Kuppeveld, Frank J M | ||
| Journal | Antimicrob Agents Chemother | Publication Year/Month | 2013-Apr |
| PMID | 23335743 | PMCID | PMC3623316 |
| Affiliation | 1.Department of Infectious Diseases and Immunology, Virology Division, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands. | ||
Although the genus Enterovirus contains many important human pathogens, there is no licensed drug for either the treatment or the prophylaxis of enterovirus infections. We report that fluoxetine (Prozac)--a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor--inhibits the replication of human enterovirus B (HEV-B) and HEV-D but does not affect the replication of HEV-A and HEV-C or human rhinovirus A or B. We show that fluoxetine interferes with viral RNA replication, and we identified viral protein 2C as the target of this compound.