Short communicationTeicoplanin inhibits Ebola pseudovirus infection in cell culture

- We developed a high-throughput cell-based screening assay using Ebola pseudovirus.
- We identified teicoplanin inhibiting Ebola pseudovirus infection.
- Teicoplanin blocked virus entry but did not inhibit replication.
- Teicoplanin inhibits enveloped viruses but not nonenveloped viruses.

There is currently no approved antiviral therapy for treatment of Ebola virus disease. To discover readily available approved drugs that can be rapidly repurposed for treatment of Ebola virus infections, we screened 1280 FDA-approved drugs and identified glycopeptide antibiotic teicoplanin inhibiting Ebola pseudovirus infection by blocking virus entry in the low micromolar range. Teicoplanin could be evaluated further and incorporated into ongoing clinical studies.