Activity of toxins venom of Crotalus durissus terrificus in HCV replication

Abstract

Hepatitis C affects thousands of people worldwide and is a major cause of disease and transplant-related liver. There is no vaccine for hepatitis C virus (HCV) and the current therapy does not show results for all treated patients, also presenting high costs. Many compounds extracted from animal toxins have demonstrated therapeutic potential, some with antiviral activity. Previous data showed that complexes from snake's venom presented an inhibitory effect on other virus replication. In Brazil, there is a diversity of venomous serpents, which the potential of its venom complexes is unclear. New approaches for the progress of future antiviral are necessary for the improvement in the response and decrease the cost of treatment. In this context, compounds from snake venom may provide an alternative to the development of new therapies. The present work aims to study the effect of toxins extracted from the venom of C. durissus terrificus in HCV replication in vitro. Luciferase, cytotoxicity, Western Blot, and Immunofluorescence assays will be performed and the results obtained may be relevant to the development of future treatments against HCV infection. (AU)