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REVIEW article

Front. Cell. Infect. Microbiol.
Sec. Veterinary and Zoonotic Infection
Volume 15 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fcimb.2025.1436026
This article is part of the Research Topic Exploring Zoonoses: Therapeutic Strategies and Drug Mechanisms View all 4 articles

Antivirotics based on defective interfering particles: emerging concepts and challenges

Provisionally accepted
Sofya Maryanchik Sofya Maryanchik 1Sofiia Borovikova Sofiia Borovikova 2Aleksandra Ivanova Aleksandra Ivanova 3Trofimov V. V. Trofimov V. V. 4O. E. Bagrova O. E. Bagrova 5,6Anastasia Frolova Anastasia Frolova 7,8O. N. Mityaeva O. N. Mityaeva 9P Yu. Volchkov P Yu. Volchkov 10,9*A. A Deviatkin A. A Deviatkin 9*
  • 1 Research Institute of Translational Medicine, Pirogov Russian National Research Medical University, Moscow, Moscow Oblast, Russia
  • 2 Institute of Gene Biology (RAS), Moscow, Moscow Oblast, Russia
  • 3 Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry (RAS), Moscow, Moscow Oblast, Russia
  • 4 Endocrinology Research Center, Moscow, Moscow Oblast, Russia
  • 5 N.F.Gamaleya Scientific Research Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology, Russian Academy of Medical Sciences, Moscow, Moscow Oblast, Russia
  • 6 Faculty of Physics, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Moscow, Russia
  • 7 I.M. Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University, Moscow, Moscow Oblast, Russia
  • 8 Sirius University, Sochi, Russia
  • 9 Federal research center for innovator and emerging biomedical and pharmaceutical technologies, Moscow, Moscow Oblast, Russia
  • 10 Independent researcher, Moscow, Russia

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Viruses are obligate parasites, that use the host's internal metabolic systems for their own reproduction. This complicates the search for molecular targets to prevent the spread of viral infection without disrupting the vital functions of human cells. Defective interfering particles (DIPs) are natural competitors of viruses for important resources of viral reproduction. DIPs emerge during infection, originate from the normal viral replication process and inhibit its progression, making them an interesting candidate for antiviral therapy. Here we describe the biology of DIPs, advances in DIPbased antiviral technology, analyse their therapeutic potential and provide a systemic overview of existing preventive and therapeutic antiviral strategies.

    Keywords: Defective interfering particles, DIP, DVG, Antiviral therapy, viruses SARS-CoV-2, Severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus 2, NiV, Nipah virus, PV1, Poliovirus type 1, CVB3, coxsackievirus B3

    Received: 21 May 2024; Accepted: 28 Jan 2025.

    Copyright: © 2025 Maryanchik, Borovikova, Ivanova, V., Bagrova, Frolova, Mityaeva, Volchkov and Deviatkin. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    P Yu. Volchkov, Federal research center for innovator and emerging biomedical and pharmaceutical technologies, Moscow, Moscow Oblast, Russia
    A. A Deviatkin, Federal research center for innovator and emerging biomedical and pharmaceutical technologies, Moscow, Moscow Oblast, Russia

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.