Small molecules VP-14637 and JNJ-2408068 inhibit respiratory syncytial virus fusion by similar mechanisms

Here we present data on the mechanism of action of VP-14637 and JNJ-2408068 (formerly R-170591), two small-molecule inhibitors of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). Both inhibitors exhibited potent antiviral activity with 50% effective concentrations (EC₅₀S) of 1.4 and 2.1 nM, respectively. A similar inhibitory effect was observed in a RSV-mediated cell fusion assay (EC₅₀ = 5.4 and 0.9 nM, respectively). Several drug-resistant RSV variants were selected in vitro in the presence of each compound. All selected viruses exhibited significant cross-resistance to both inhibitors and contained various single amino acid substitutions in two distinct regions of the viral F protein, the heptad repeat 2 (HR2; mutations D486N, E487D, and F488Y), and the intervening domain between HR1 and HR2 (mutation K399I and T400A). Studies using [³H]VP-14637 revealed a specific binding of the compound to RSV-infected cells that was efficiently inhibited by JNJ-2408068 (50% inhibitory concentration = 2.9 nM) but not by the HR2-derived peptide T-118. Further analysis using a transient T7 vaccinia expression system indicated that RSV F protein is sufficient for this interaction. F proteins containing either the VP-14637 or JNJ-2408068 resistance mutations exhibited greatly reduced binding of [³H]VP-14637. Molecular modeling analysis suggests that both molecules may bind into a small hydrophobic cavity in the inner core of F protein, interacting simultaneously with both the HR1 and HR2 domains. Altogether, these data indicate that VP-14637 and JNJ-2408068 interfere with RSV fusion through a mechanism involving a similar interaction with the F protein.