Blue-Green Algae Protein May Offer Hope for Ebola Infection

Blue-Green Algae Protein May Offer Hope for Ebola Infection

BETHESDA, Md.--Cyanovirin-N (CV-N), an antiviral proteinderived from blue-green algae, may inhibit Ebola infection, according toresearchers at the National Cancer Institute's (NCI) Molecular Targets DiscoveryProgram, who collaborated with the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute ofInfectious Diseases, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and theNational Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. Their study,published online in Antiviral Research (www.elsevier.com/locate/antiviral),indicated cyanovirin-N extended the survival time of Ebola-infected mice.

CV-N is known to inhibit HIV infection by binding to a particular sugarmolecule on the surface of the virus, thereby blocking it from entering cells,according to NCI. The Ebola virus has similar sugar molecules on its surface,and CV-N was also found to bind to these molecules on the Ebola virus.Additionally, when researchers injected mice with CV-N prior to infecting themwith Ebola and continued giving the animals daily CV-N injections, the onset ofvisible illness was delayed and the animals survived longer than those nottreated with the protein.

"CV-N is the first molecule known to inhibit Ebola infection byinterfering with the virus' ability to enter cells," said Barry O'Keefe,Ph.D., of NCI's Center for Cancer Research. Researchers also noted that whileCV-N will probably not be an effective treatment for Ebola infection,understanding the specific molecules involved in CV-N's interaction with thevirus will help clarify the processes that lead to infection and may pave theway for eventual therapies.