LAVR-289, a new acyclo-nucleoside phosphonate having broad-spectrum activity against herpesviruses

Human herpesviruses are latent opportunistic large dsDNA viruses that can have deleterious effect in immunocompromised patients by triggering life-threatening infections. Over the past years, different antivirals have been developed against a variety of herpesviruses, including Acyclovir for herpes simplex viruses (HSV1 and 2) and ganciclovir and letermovir for human cytomegalovirus (hCMV). However, broad-spectrum inhibitors of herpesvirus infections are still missing. Here we report the efficacy of LAVR-289, a new acyclic nucleoside analog, on a broad variety of herpesviruses from human and animal origin. LAVR-289 displays nanomolar efficiency in vitro , is active on viral strains resistant to gold standard antivirals and ex vivo on reconstituted human skin infected with HSV1. Combined with its anti-poxvirus and anti-adenovirus activity, LAVR-289 can become the next gold standard for the management of opportunistic virus infections in immunocompromised patient.