Cyclophilins and Their Roles in Hepatitis C Virus and Flavivirus Infections: Perspectives for Novel Antiviral Approaches
Department of Biomedical and Molecular Sciences, Queen’s University, Kingston, ON K7L 3N6, Canada
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Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Academic Editor: Anna Honko
Pathogens 2021, 10(7), 902; https://doi.org/10.3390/pathogens10070902
Received: 14 June 2021
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Revised: 7 July 2021
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Accepted: 15 July 2021
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Published: 17 July 2021
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Hepatitis C Virus: Remaining Challenges)
Cyclophilins are cellular peptidyl-prolyl isomerases that play an important role in viral infections, with demonstrated roles in the replication of hepatitis C virus (HCV) and other viruses in the Flaviviridae family, such as dengue virus (DENV) and yellow fever virus (YFV). Here, we discuss the roles of cyclophilins in HCV infection and provide a comprehensive overview of the mechanisms underlying the requirement for cyclophilins during HCV replication. Notably, cyclophilin inhibitor therapy has been demonstrated to be effective in reducing HCV replication in chronically infected patients. While the roles of cyclophilins are relatively well-understood for HCV infection, cyclophilins are more recently emerging as host factors for flavivirus infection as well, providing potential new therapeutic avenues for these viral infections which currently lack antiviral therapies. However, further studies are required to elucidate the roles of cyclophilins in flavivirus replication. Here, we review the current knowledge of the role of cyclophilins in HCV infection to provide a conceptual framework to understand how cyclophilins may contribute to other viral infections, such as DENV and YFV. Improved understanding of the roles of cyclophilins in viral infection may open perspectives for the development of cyclophilin inhibitors as effective antiviral therapeutics for HCV and related viruses.
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MDPI and ACS Style
Gallardo-Flores, C.E.; Colpitts, C.C. Cyclophilins and Their Roles in Hepatitis C Virus and Flavivirus Infections: Perspectives for Novel Antiviral Approaches. Pathogens 2021, 10, 902. https://doi.org/10.3390/pathogens10070902
AMA Style
Gallardo-Flores CE, Colpitts CC. Cyclophilins and Their Roles in Hepatitis C Virus and Flavivirus Infections: Perspectives for Novel Antiviral Approaches. Pathogens. 2021; 10(7):902. https://doi.org/10.3390/pathogens10070902
Chicago/Turabian StyleGallardo-Flores, Carla E., and Che C. Colpitts. 2021. "Cyclophilins and Their Roles in Hepatitis C Virus and Flavivirus Infections: Perspectives for Novel Antiviral Approaches" Pathogens 10, no. 7: 902. https://doi.org/10.3390/pathogens10070902
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