Discovery of marine resources leading to treatment for South American hemorrhagic fever
Associate Professor Shuzo Urata of the National Research Center for the Control and Prevention of Infectious Diseases (CCPID) at Nagasaki University and Associate Professor Hideaki Unno of the Graduate School of Integrated Science and Technology at Nagasaki University have discovered that a newly identified sugar-binding protein (lectin) found in sea anemones inhabiting the waters near Japan has a inhibitory effect on the Junin virus, which causes Argentine hemorrhagic fever, one of the hemorrhagic fevers found in South America. This research finding is expected to lead to the development of new antiviral drugs for South American hemorrhagic fevers and other diseases.
This study was published in the international academic journal Antiviral Research on May 15, 2025.
A new sugar-bound protein derived from sea anemones discovered in the waters off Japan has been shown to have antiviral effects against a vaccine strain of the Junin virus that causes Argentine hemorrhagic fever.
Figure 1: Sea Anemone Anthopleura japonica, which owns AJLec
Figure 2: Dimer form of AJLec
Figure 3: Number of the Junin virus infected cells (Green) was reduced by the addition of AJLec.
Journal: Antiviral Research
Title: Mode of antiviral action of the galactose-specific lectin, AJLec, on the Junin virus propagation
Authors:
Shuzo Urata
Associate Professor, National Research Center for the Control and Prevention of Infectious Diseases (CCPID), Institute of Tropical Medicine (NEKKEN), Nagasaki University
Meion Lee
Former undergraduate student, CCPID, and Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Nagasaki University
Tomoko Tsuruta
Research Assistant, CCPID, Nagasaki University
Reo Igarashi
Ph.D. student, Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, and CCPID, Nagasaki University
Kohsuke Takeda
Professor, Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Nagasaki University
Hideaki Unno
Associate Professor, Graduate School of Integrated Science and Technology, Organization for Marine Science and Technology, Nagasaki University
Publication Date: May 15, 2025
Nagasaki University
National Research Center for the Control and Prevention of Infectious Diseases (CCPID)
Tel: 095-819-4306 (in Japan) / +81-95-819-4306 (from overseas)
Email: ccpid_liaison@ml.nagasaki-u.ac.jp
For more details, please see the full article in Nagasaki University’s Academic Output SITE.
