Will general antiviral protocols always be science fiction?

Abstract

Currently, antiviral drugs are targeted at specific viruses, requiring extensive research to develop de novo before a trial molecule is approved for a single viral target. However, it is possible that a strategic asset for mainstreaming antivirals has been hiding in plain sight. In our recent article published in Frontiers in Pharmacology, we explored the scope for plant-derived polyphenols, such as flavonoids, to be applied against infections spanning phylogenetically unrelated virus families. Beyond a long history of safe use in ordinary diet, common polyphenols also feature promiscuous binding behavior, a quality echoed by laboratory evidence that many are effective in vitro against viruses from diverse genera. Moreover, we mapped the research base undergirding the inflammatory response’s tendency to selectively return serum polyphenols from their latent, metabolized form back into their active, promiscuously-binding form uniquely at sites of inflammation -- such as those routinely established by viral infections. Verifying efficacy of flavonoids to constitute an annually-updated general antiviral protocol will require mobilizing a spectrum of animal model studies and clinical trials for initial confirmation.