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Ebola virus (EBOV) is highly pathogenic, with a predisposition to cause outbreaks in human populations accompanied by significant mortality. Owing to the lack of approved therapies, screening programmes of potentially efficacious drugs have been undertaken. One of these studies has demonstrated the possible utility of chloroquine against EBOV using pseudotyped assays. In mouse models of EBOV disease there are conflicting reports of the therapeutic effects of chloroquine. There are currently no reports of its efficacy using the larger and more stringent guinea pig model of infection. In this study we have shown that replication of live EBOV is impaired by chloroquine in vitro. However, no protective effects were observed in vivo when EBOV-infected guinea pigs were treated with chloroquine. These results advocate that chloroquine should not be considered as a treatment strategy for EBOV.

Original publication

DOI

10.1099/jgv.0.000309

Type

Journal article

Journal

The Journal of general virology

Publication Date

12/2015

Volume

96

Pages

3484 - 3492

Addresses

Public Health England, Porton Down, Salisbury, Wiltshire SP4 0JG, UK.

Keywords

Animals, Humans, Guinea Pigs, Hemorrhagic Fever, Ebola, Chloroquine, RNA, Viral, Antimalarials, Virus Replication, Female, Ebolavirus