Nat. Mater. https://doi.org/10.1038/nmat5053 (2017)

Broad-spectrum and effective antiviral drugs are difficult to come by, and many of the most deadly viruses still do not have vaccines to provide protection in humans. In new work led by David Lembo, Francesco Stellacci and colleagues, they have taken advantage of a mechanism in viruses for cell interaction, combined with nanoparticles, to make a new broad-spectrum antiviral.

The team designed nanoparticles with long linkers that mimic heparin sulfate proteoglycans (HSPG), a conserved surface protein used by viruses in the first steps to binding to cells for infection. Testing the nanoparticles in several in vitro and in vivo assays, the team shows that they bind strongly to a wide range of viruses and effectively inhibit them from infecting cells.