Small molecule inhibitors reveal Niemann-Pick C1 is essential for Ebola virus infection.

Abstract

Ebola virus (EboV) is a highly pathogenic enveloped virus that causes outbreaks of zoonotic infection in Africa. The clinical symptoms are manifestations of the massive production of pro-inflammatory cytokines in response to infection and in many outbreaks, mortality exceeds 75%. The unpredictable onset, ease of transmission, rapid progression of disease, high mortality and lack of effective vaccine or therapy have created a high level of public concern about EboV. Here we report the identification of a novel benzylpiperazine adamantane diamide-derived compound that inhibits EboV infection. Using mutant cell lines and informative derivatives of the lead compound, we show that the target of the inhibitor is the endosomal membrane protein Niemann-Pick C1 (NPC1). We find that NPC1 is essential for infection, that it binds to the virus glycoprotein (GP), and that antiviral compounds interfere with GP binding to NPC1. Combined with the results of previous studies of GP structure and function, our findings support a model of EboV infection in which cleavage of the GP1 subunit by endosomal cathepsin proteases removes heavily glycosylated domains to expose the amino-terminal domain, which is a ligand for NPC1 and regulates membrane fusion by the GP2 subunit. Thus, NPC1 is essential for EboV entry and a target for antiviral therapy.

• Authors: Marceline Côté, John Misasi, Tao Ren, Anna Bruchez, Kyungae Lee, Claire Marie Filone, Lisa Hensley, Qi Li, Daniel Ory, Kartik Chandran, James Cunningham
• Journal: Nature (Nature) Vol. 477 Issue 7364 Pg. 344-8 (Aug 24 2011) ISSN: 1476-4687 [Electronic] England
• PMID: 21866101 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't, Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.)

Chemical References

• Antiviral Agents
• Carrier Proteins
• Glycoproteins
• Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins
• Membrane Glycoproteins
• NPC1 protein, human
• Niemann-Pick C1 Protein
• Piperazines
• Viral Fusion Proteins
• Cathepsins
• Adamantane

Topics

• Adamantane (analogs & derivatives, chemistry)
• Animals
• Antiviral Agents (chemistry, pharmacology)
• Carrier Proteins (metabolism)
• Cathepsins (metabolism)
• Cell Line
• Chlorocebus aethiops
• Ebolavirus (drug effects, physiology)
• Endosomes (enzymology)
• Glycoproteins (metabolism)
• Hemorrhagic Fever, Ebola (drug therapy, metabolism)
• Humans
• Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins
• Membrane Fusion (drug effects)
• Membrane Glycoproteins (metabolism)
• Molecular Weight
• Niemann-Pick C1 Protein
• Piperazines (chemistry)
• Vero Cells
• Viral Fusion Proteins (metabolism)
• Virus Internalization (drug effects)