Therapeutic Applications of Peptides against Zika Virus: A Review

Zika Virus (ZIKV) belongs to the class of flavivirus that can be transmitted by Aedes mosquitoes. The number of Zika virus caused cases of acute infections, neurological disorders and congenital microcephaly are rapidly growing and therefore, in 2016, the World Health Organization declared a global “Public Health Emergency of International Concern”. Anti-ZIKV therapeutic and vaccine development strategies are growing worldwide in recent years, however, no specific and safe treatment is available till date to save the human life. Currently, development of peptide therapeutics against ZIKV has attracted rising attention on account of their high safety concern and low development cost, in comparison to small therapeutic molecules and antibody-based anti-viral drugs. In present review, an overview of ZIKV inhibition by peptide-based inhibitors including E-protein derived peptides, antimicrobial peptides, frog skin peptides and probiotic peptides has been discussed. Peptides inhibitors have also been reported to act against NS5, NS2B-NS3 protease and proteasome in order to inhibit ZIKV infection. Recent advances in peptide-based therapeutics and vaccine have been reviewed and their future promise against ZIKV infections has been explored.