Nanocarbon-Based Glycoconjugates as Multivalent Inhibitors of Ebola Virus Infection
Nanocarbon platforms offer a wide range of possibilities to mimic viruses in their ability to interact via multivalent presentation. This is of a particular interest to test how multivalent presentation of carbohydrates can interact with such viruses, as in the case of Ebola. These carbon nanoforms have been chemically modified by the covalent attachment of glycodendrons and glycofullerenes using the “click chemistry” reaction. These modifications dramatically increase the water solubility of these structurally different nanocarbons.
Their efficiency in blocking DC-SIGN-mediated viral infection by an artificial Ebola virus has been tested in a cellular experimental assay, finding that glycoconjugates based on Multi Walls Carbon Nanotubes functionalized with glycofullerenes are potent inhibitors of viral infection.