Title Host-directed therapy with 2-deoxy-D-glucose inhibits human rhinoviruses, endemic coronaviruses, and SARS-CoV-2.
Author Wali, Laxmikant; Karbiener, Michael; Chou, Scharon; Kovtunyk, Vitalii; Adonyi, Adam; Gosler, Irene; Contreras, Ximena; Stoeva, Delyana; Blaas, Dieter; Stockl, Johannes; Kreil, Thomas R; Gualdoni, Guido A; Gorki, Anna-Dorothea
Journal J Virus Erad Publication Year/Month 2022-Dec
PMID 36514716 PMCID PMC9731833
Affiliation + expend 1.G.ST Antivirals GmbH, Austria.

Rhinoviruses (RVs) and coronaviruses (CoVs) upregulate host cell metabolic pathways such as glycolysis to meet their bioenergetic demands for rapid multiplication. Using the glycolysis inhibitor 2-deoxy-d-glucose (2-DG), we assessed the dose-dependent inhibition of viral replication of minor- and major-receptor group RVs in epithelial cells. 2-DG disrupted RV infection cycle by inhibiting template negative-strand as well as genomic positive-strand RNA synthesis, resulting in less progeny virus and RV-mediated cell death. Assessment of 2-DG\'s intracellular kinetics revealed that after a short-exposure to 2-DG, the active intermediate, 2-DG6P, is stored intracellularly for several hours. Finally, we confirmed the antiviral effect of 2-DG on pandemic SARS-CoV-2 and showed for the first time that it also reduces replication of endemic human coronaviruses. These results provide further evidence that 2-DG could be used as a broad-spectrum antiviral.

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