Current prevention and potential treatment options for dengue infection

Abstract

Currently, treatments for dengue infection are only symptomatic as no antiviral agents nor vaccines are available to combat this virus. Despite challenges faced by researchers, many efforts are ongoing to reduce cases of dengue infection either by targeting the vector or the virus. Vector population is monitored and reduced by using mechanical, chemical and biological controls. Chemical control is achieved either by using synthetic or natural insecticides where the latter is more preferable. In biological control, bacteria, fungi and larvivorous fish are utilised to reduce the vector population. Moreover, genes of mosquitoes are also explored to produce progenies which are sterile with low survival ability. Vaccines are among the most effective ways to prevent viral infection. Various approaches have been used and are still being explored towards producing vaccines for dengue. These include live attenuated, inactivated, recombinant subunit, nucleic acid and virus-like particles vaccines. The aim is to produce a vaccine which can target all the four serotypes of the virus. Monoclonal antibodies are widely researched on to equip the host defense mechanism against the dengue virus. Deeper understanding of the virus replication cycle warrants the development of antiviral agents which target viral proteins vital for the replication process. Bioactive compounds are also utilised in the development of antiviral agents. The importance of surveillance and supportive therapy are also discussed.

Assessment of Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices Regarding Dengue among Physicians: A Web-Based Cross-Sectional Survey

“…There is no effective vaccine for dengue fever. Instead, it is usually managed based on the clinical signs and symptoms of the infected patients [ 24 ]. Basic steps of dengue management include (1) treating the early febrile phase of dengue fever with the WHO recommended nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory agents (NSAIDs); (2) initiating oral or intravenous fluid therapy to stabilize hemodynamic status, transfusing blood in the case of severe bleeding; and (3) closely monitoring other clinical parameters, such as platelet count, hematocrit, and urine output [ 22 ].…”

Potential Medicinal Plants for the Treatment of Dengue Fever and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome-Coronavirus

“…Many other compounds isolated from various plants that display anti-DENV activities are shown in Table 3. To date, antiviral agents for DENV that have been developed act by inhibiting viral entry, RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp), protease, or helicase enzymes (Figure 2) [126]. So far, the plant compounds purified from trunk bark of Crypotocarya chartacea, mono-and dialkylated flavanones (chartaceones 1-6) have shown remarkable non-structural protein 5 (NS5) RdRp inhibitory activity with IC 50 ranging from 1.8 to 4.2 µM [127].…”

Risk factors for hospitalization and mortality due to dengue fever in a Mexican population: a retrospective cohort study

“…In recent decades, the number of dengue cases has increased dramatically, becoming a major threat to global health. Around 390 million cases of dengue are reported worldwide each year, of which 96 million present clinical manifestations (Guzman and Harris, 2015b;Jasamai et al, 2019;Swain et al, 2020). 2019 was the year with the highest prevalence ever recorded since the epidemiological surveillance of the disease began (Organización Mundial de la Salud (OMS), 2020).…”

“…In patients with severe symptoms, hospital admission is warranted for attenuation of the patient's inflammatory response to the infection (Low et al, 2017). Analgesics and antipyretics are useful to reduce symptoms (Jasamai et al, 2019).…”