Redirecting Imipramine against Bluetongue Virus Infection: Insights from a Genome-wide Haploid Screening Study.

ABSTRACT: Bluetongue virus (BTV), an arbovirus of ruminants, is a causative agent of numerous epidemics around the world. Due to the emergence of novel reassortant BTV strains and new outbreaks, there is an unmet need for efficacious antivirals. In this study, we used an improved haploid screening platform to identify the relevant host factors for BTV infection. Our screening tool identified and validated the host factor Niemann-Pick C1 (NPC1), a lysosomal membrane protein that is involved in lysosomal cholesterol transport, as a critical factor in BTV infection. This finding prompted us to investigate the possibility of testing imipramine, an antidepressant drug known to inhibit NPC1 function by interfering with intracellular cholesterol trafficking. In this study, we evaluated the sensitivity of B

SUBMITTER: John L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9144988 | biostudies-literature | 2022 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature