IIT-Roorkee finds drug to fight chikungunya

Dehradun, October 6

Scientists at IIT-Roorkee have found that a commonly used deworming drug has anti-viral properties and could lead to new therapies against Chikungunya — a deadly mosquito-borne disease.

Currently, there are no vaccines or antiviral drugs available to cure Chikungunya, and the treatment is focussed on relieving the symptoms associated with the infection.

“Our research has shown that piperazine, a drug existing in the market, is successful in curbing the spread and replication of the Chikungunya virus in a lab setting,” said Shailly Tomar, a professor at Indian Institute of Technology (IIT)-Roorkee.

“We are currently testing the molecule on animals and hope to take this to clinical trials soon,” said Tomar, who headed the research project.

Piperazine is a drug commonly used in deworming treatments against roundworm and pinworm.

Scientists, using their expertise in virology and structure biology, discovered the antiviral potential of piperazine and determined the mechanism of inhibition of Chikungunya virus. — PTI