Chinese researchers have found that an oral antiviral drug originally approved to treat Covid-19 shows significant activity against the Nipah virus, raising hopes for new ways to prevent and treat the emerging and often fatal infection.
In a statement released on Monday, the Wuhan Institute of Virology under the Chinese Academy of Sciences said joint research by Chinese scientists had shown that the nucleoside drug VV116 has strong antiviral effects against Nipah virus in laboratory and animal studies.
First identified during an outbreak in Malaysia in 1998, Nipah virus has since become a major global public health concern, with fatality rates ranging from 40 to 70 per cent. Recent cases reported in India’s West Bengal state earlier this year, including deaths and the quarantine of about 100 close contacts, have again highlighted the lack of approved vaccines or specific treatments for the disease. The World Health Organization has classified Nipah virus as a top-priority regional threat because of its high mortality rate and wide host range.
The research was conducted by a joint team from the Wuhan Institute of Virology, the Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica and Vigonvita Life Science Co. Their findings were published in the international journal Emerging Microbes & Infections in a paper titled “The oral nucleoside drug VV116 is a promising candidate for treating Nipah virus infection”.
VV116, which is approved in China and Uzbekistan for the treatment of Covid-19, and its active metabolites were found to strongly inhibit Nipah virus in vitro. The experiments showed antiviral activity against both major variants of the virus, the Malaysia strain and the Bangladesh strain.
In a lethal infection model using golden hamsters, researchers found that oral administration of VV116 at a dose of 400 milligrams per kilogram of body weight increased the animals’ survival rate to 66.7 per cent. The treatment also significantly reduced viral loads in key target organs, including the lungs, spleen and brain, according to the institute’s statement.
The findings suggest that VV116 has clear therapeutic potential against Nipah virus infection and could be used both as a preventive treatment for high-risk groups such as healthcare workers and laboratory staff, and as a readily deployable drug option during current or future outbreaks.
Vigonvita Life Science Co said on Tuesday that the preclinical data indicate the drug could be developed further as a treatment for Nipah virus infection. Given the virus’s high fatality rate and the absence of approved vaccines or targeted therapies, the company said it would closely monitor outbreak trends and consider launching clinical trials for treatment and post-exposure prevention when conditions allow.
Industry experts cautioned, however, that despite the encouraging results, extensive clinical trials would still be required before VV116 could be used in routine practice against Nipah virus, according to reports.
Writing on Monday, Wang Xinyu, deputy director of the infectious diseases department at Huashan Hospital affiliated with Fudan University, said monitoring data from the WHO and disease control agencies in multiple countries show that India is currently in an active phase of Nipah virus transmission. While the situation has not escalated into a large-scale epidemic, he noted that small, high-fatality outbreaks have occurred in some areas, with signs of cross-regional spread and clustered infections within hospitals.
Wang added that no confirmed human cases of Nipah virus infection have been reported on the Chinese mainland so far. “The public does not need to panic,” he wrote, “but should remain cautious, maintain good hygiene habits and trust in the effectiveness of scientific monitoring and prevention measures.”
