{"id":18065,"date":"2020-05-13T15:26:00","date_gmt":"2020-05-13T15:26:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dev.inrs.ca\/research-on-a-broad-spectrum-antiviral-against-coronaviruses\/"},"modified":"2020-09-15T11:06:54","modified_gmt":"2020-09-15T15:06:54","slug":"des-recherches-pour-un-antiviral-a-large-spectre-contre-les-coronavirus","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dev.inrs.ca\/en\/news\/research-on-a-broad-spectrum-antiviral-against-coronaviruses\/","title":{"rendered":"Research on a broad-spectrum antiviral against coronaviruses"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Professors Steven Laplante<\/a>, Laurent Chatel-Chaix<\/a>, and Alain Lamarre<\/a> of Institut national de la recherche scientifique (INRS) have made it their mission to find molecules capable of treating COVID-19. Together, they will test thousands of therapeutic molecules on infected cells to determine their efficacy against coronaviruses.<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The purpose of the research is not to find a vaccine, but an antiviral capable of treating those infected with SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19. \u201cOur goal is to reduce viral replication to avoid the cytokinestorm that is responsible for a large portion of deaths,\u201d said Professor Laurent Chatel-Chaix.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Steven Laplante\u2019s laboratory will mainly test molecules already cleared by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in order to speed up the drug creation process. \u201cUsually this can take 12 to 15 years, but we don\u2019t have that luxury here. If a molecule that is already approved works, we can move on to clinical trials faster, because we already know it is safe for the human body,\u201d explained Laplante, a medicinal chemistry researcher whose project received \u20ac70,000 from the Institut Pasteur International Network<\/a>\u2019s coronavirus task force.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How do you know if a molecule is effective? Professor Laplante combines it with different proteins from the virus to see whether there is an interaction. He is particularly interested in two conserved proteins expressed from all coronaviruses in infected cells: protease and polymerase. That way, the drug would be active against all types of coronaviruses, not just SARS-CoV-2. \u201cIf there\u2019s another outbreak in five years with a mutated virus or another coronavirus, we\u2019d already have a working antiviral,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Alongside Steven Laplante\u2019s work on already-approved molecules, Professor Laurent Chatel-Chaix will test drugs developed by Professor Charles Gauthier<\/a> of INRS, whose basic molecule has already been shown to have an effect on coronaviruses other than SARS-CoV-2. He will also test molecules from the R\u00e9seau qu\u00e9b\u00e9cois de recherche sur les m\u00e9dicaments<\/a> library and those targeted by Professor Laplante for their interactions with infectious diseases.<\/p>\n\n\n\n