Molecular docking revealed the binding of nucleotide/side inhibitors to Zika viral polymerase solved structures

Abstract

A new Zika virus (ZIKV) outbreak started in 2015. According to the World Health Organization, 84 countries confirmed ZIKV infection. RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) was an appealing target for drug designers during the last two decades. Through molecular docking, we screened 16 nucleotide/side inhibitors against ZIKV RdRp. While the mode of interaction with ZIKV is different from that in the hepatitis C virus (HCV), nucleotide/side inhibitors in this study (mostly anti-HCV) showed promising binding affinities (−6.2 to −9.7 kcal/mol calculated by AutoDock Vina) to ZIKV RdRp. Setrobuvir, YAK and, to a lesser extent, IDX-184 reveal promising results compared to other inhibitors in terms of binding ZIKV RdRp. These candidates would be powerful anti-ZIKV drugs.

Keywords:

• Zika virus
• RNA-dependent RNA polymerase
• molecular docking
• drug protein interaction
• NS5 solved structure