The Peptide A-3302-B Isolated from a Marine Bacterium Micromonospora sp. Inhibits HSV-2 Infection by Preventing the Viral Egress from Host Cells

• Published in: International journal of molecular sciences Vol. 23; no. 2; p. 947
• Main Authors: Sureram, Sanya, Arduino, Irene, Ueoka, Reiko, Rittà, Massimo, Francese, Rachele, Srivibool, Rattanaporn, Darshana, Dhanushka, Piel, Jörn, Ruchirawat, Somsak, Muratori, Luisa, Lembo, David, Kittakoop, Prasat, Donalisio, Manuela
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 15-01-2022; MDPI
• Subjects: Acyclovir; Animals; Antiviral activity; Antiviral agents; Antiviral Agents - chemistry; Antiviral Agents - isolation & purification; Antiviral Agents - pharmacology; Asymptomatic; Bacteria; Chlorocebus aethiops; Cytomegalovirus; Cytomegalovirus - drug effects; Cytomegalovirus - physiology; Disease control; Drug dosages; Drug resistance; Drugs; Egress; egress inhibitor; Foreskin - cytology; Foreskin - virology; Gene expression; Herpes simplex; herpes simplex virus type 2; Herpes viruses; Herpesvirus 1, Human - drug effects; Herpesvirus 1, Human - physiology; Herpesvirus 2, Human - drug effects; Herpesvirus 2, Human - physiology; HIV; Human immunodeficiency virus; Humans; Infections; Inflammation; Laboratories; Male; marine natural products; Micromonospora; Micromonospora - chemistry; Molecular Structure; natural antiviral products; Natural products; Peptides; Peptides - chemistry; Peptides - isolation & purification; Peptides - pharmacology; Progeny; Proteins; rare actinomycete; Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2; Vero Cells; Virus Release - drug effects; Viruses; egress inhibitor; rare actinomycete; natural antiviral products; marine natural products; Micromonospora; herpes simplex virus type 2
• ISSN: 1422-0067; 1661-6596; 1422-0067
• DOI: 10.3390/ijms23020947

Herpesviruses are highly prevalent in the human population, and frequent reactivations occur throughout life. Despite antiviral drugs against herpetic infections, the increasing appearance of drug-resistant viral strains and their adverse effects prompt the research of novel antiherpetic drugs for treating lesions. Peptides obtained from natural sources have recently become of particular interest for antiviral therapy applications. In this work, we investigated the antiviral activity of the peptide A-3302-B, isolated from a marine bacterium,
sp., strain MAG 9-7, against herpes simplex virus type 1, type 2, and human cytomegalovirus. Results showed that the peptide exerted a specific inhibitory activity against HSV-2 with an EC
value of 14 μM. Specific antiviral assays were performed to investigate the mechanism of action of A-3302-B. We demonstrated that the peptide did not affect the expression of viral proteins, but it inhibited the late events of the HSV-2 replicative cycle. In detail, it reduced the cell-to-cell virus spread and the transmission of the extracellular free virus by preventing the egress of HSV-2 progeny from the infected cells. The dual antiviral and previously reported anti-inflammatory activities of A-3302-B, and its effect against an acyclovir-resistant HSV-2 strain are attractive features for developing a therapeutic to reduce the transmission of HSV-2 infections.