Covid-19 oral drug shows promising antiviral activity against deadly Nipah virus: Chinese scientists

Chinese scientists have discovered that VV116, an oral drug approved for treating Covid-19, demonstrates significant antiviral activity against the deadly Nipah virus, according to a statement released by the Wuhan Institute of Virology under the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

The breakthrough finding offers new hope for combating an emerging infectious disease that carries a fatality rate of up to 70 percent and currently has no approved treatments or vaccines.

This came after India’s West Bengal state reported new Nipah cases and deaths, prompting authorities to place approximately 100 close contacts under quarantine. The World Health Organization has classified Nipah as a top-priority regional threat due to its lack of approved treatments or vaccines and its ability to infect a wide range of hosts.

The research findings, published in the international journal Emerging Microbes & Infections, come from a joint team at the Wuhan Institute of Virology, the Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, and Vigonvita Life Science Co.

VV116, currently approved for Covid-19 treatment in China and Uzbekistan, demonstrated notable inhibiting effects on both major Nipah virus strains — the Malaysia strain and the Bangladesh strain — during laboratory experiments.

In animal trials using golden hamsters infected with lethal doses of the virus, oral administration of VV116 at 400 milligrams per kilogram of body weight increased survival rates to 66.7 percent. The treatment also significantly reduced viral loads in critical organs — including the lungs, spleen, and brain, according to the institute’s statement.

The researchers suggest that VV116 could serve as a preventive treatment for high-risk groups such as healthcare workers and laboratory personnel, and as a readily available response option for current and future Nipah virus outbreaks.

(Staff reporter and Global Times)