Study of anti-parasitic drug shows promise for Ebola treatment

A new study published in the journal iScience reveals that the already Food and Drug Administration-approved drug nitazoxanide may hold promise as an Ebola treatment.

Nitazoxanide, or NTZ, is not traditionally used for Ebola treatment. Rather, it is a treatment for gastrointestinal infections caused by parasites. However, it has the added benefit of enhancing the immune system’s ability to detect Ebola. As such, it enhances immune response and actively inhibits Ebola replication, according to the Boston Children’s Hospital.

One of the world’s largest-ever Ebola outbreaks currently ravages the Democratic Republic of the Congo, but there are currently no oral, inexpensive medications available for Ebola.

“Ebola masks RIG-I and PKR, so that cells don’t perceive that Ebola is inside,” Dr. Anne Goldfeld, study leader from the Program in Cellular and Molecular Medicine at Boston Children’s Hospital, said. “This lets Ebola get a foothold in the cell and race ahead of the immune response. What we’ve been able to do is enhance the host viral detection response with NTZ. It’s a new path in treating Ebola.”

Goldfield and her collaborators found that in lab experiments on NTZ in human cells, the drug significantly amplified immune responses to Ebola and inhibited Ebola replication.

Going forward, they hope to turn to animal studies and then begin repurposing it for Ebola treatment or prevention in humans.