Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42742160›Full record

ArticleEmerging microbes & infections2026

Discovery of the nucleoside analogue FMAU as a broad-spectrum anti-orthopoxvirus inhibitor in vitro and in vivo using a structure-guided hit expansion strategy.

Tingting Zheng, Yong Feng, Chang Xu, Arnaud Fondjo Kouam, Shiman Chen, Farkhod Eshboev, Yingxia Liu, Fuxiang Wang, Yang Yang, Jianxun Qi and 1 more

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Emerging microbes & infections, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors.

Tingting ZhengLaboratory of Pathogen Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, People's Republic of China.
Yong FengShenzhen Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Immunity, Shenzhen Third People's Hospital, Second Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, People's Republic of China.
Chang XuLaboratory of Pathogen Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, People's Republic of China.
Arnaud Fondjo KouamPharmacology Laboratory, Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Buea, Buea, Cameroon.
Shiman ChenShenzhen Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Immunity, Shenzhen Third People's Hospital, Second Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, People's Republic of China.
Farkhod EshboevInstitute for Advanced Studies, New Uzbekistan University, Tashkent, Uzbekistan.
Yingxia LiuShenzhen Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Immunity, Shenzhen Third People's Hospital, Second Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, People's Republic of China.
Fuxiang WangShenzhen Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Immunity, Shenzhen Third People's Hospital, Second Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, People's Republic of China.
Yang YangShenzhen Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Immunity, Shenzhen Third People's Hospital, Second Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, People's Republic of China.
Jianxun QiLaboratory of Pathogen Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, People's Republic of China.
Lifeng FuLaboratory of Pathogen Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, People's Republic of China.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Mpox remains a critical public health threat worldwide, and currently available therapeutics against orthopoxvirus infections remain very limited. In this study, we identified 2'-deoxy-2'-fluoro-5-methyl-1-β-D-arabinofuranosyluracil (FMAU) as a broad-spectrum anti-orthopoxvirus candidate through nucleos(t)ide analogue library screening combined with a structure-guided hit expansion strategy. In Vero cells, FMAU exerted potent in vitro antiviral activity against vaccinia virus (VACV) and monkeypox virus (MPXV), with EC₅₀ values of 1.99 μM and 30 nM, respectively, while exhibiting no apparent cytotoxicity, as reflected by a CC₅₀ value greater than 200 μM. In vivo mouse studies further showed that FMAU treatment provided full protection against lethal VACV and MPXV challenges, while significantly reducing viral loads in lung tissues. Importantly, oral FMAU administration retained potent therapeutic efficacy against MPXV in a mouse model of MPXV infection. Collectively, our findings identify FMAU as a promising oral anti-orthopoxvirus drug candidate and support its further preclinical evaluation.

Indexed as

Antiviral AgentsOrthopoxvirusPoxviridae InfectionsVaccinia virusAnimalsChlorocebus aethiopsDisease Models, AnimalDrug DiscoveryFemaleHumansMiceMice, Inbred BALB CMonkeypox virusVero CellsViral LoadAntiviral Agentsantiviral agentFMAUMPXVnucleoside analogueorthopoxvirus

Identifiers

PMID42742160
PMCPMC13600294

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.