Biochem/physiol Actions
Acriflavine is an antimicrobial drug used to treat against sleeping sickness, urinary tract infections, and gonorrhea. Acriflavine is a potent inhibitor of SARS-CoV-2 papain-5 like protease (PLpro), which potently inhibits viral replication in vivo in mice and ex vivo in human airway epithelia. It is a mixture of trypaflavines (3,6-diamino-10-methylacridinium chloride and 3,6-diamino-3-methylacridinium chloride) and proflavine (3,6-diaminoacridine). Apparently commercial acriflavine mixtures contain the combination of differently methylated proflavines to optimally block the PLpro active site. Also, it potently inhibits replication of other betacoronaviruses.
Antimicrobial; potent inhibitor of SARS-CoV-2 papain-5 like protease (PLpro) and inhibits virus replication