We recently reported that (2R,3R,4R,5R)-2-(4-amino-pyrrolo[2,3-d]pyrimidin-7-yl)-3-ethynyl-5-hydroxymethyl-tetrahydro-furan-3,4-diol is a potent inhibitor of dengue virus (DENV), with 50% effective concentration (EC 50 ) and cytotoxic concentration (CC 50 ) values of 0.7 M and >100 M, respectively. Here we describe the synthesis, structure-activity relationship, and antiviral characterization of the inhibitor. In an AG129 mouse model, a single-dose treatment of DENV-infected mice with the compound suppressed peak viremia and completely prevented death. Mode-of-action analysis using a DENV replicon indicated that the compound blocks viral RNA synthesis. Recombinant adenosine kinase could convert the compound to a monophosphate form. Suppression of host adenosine kinase, using a specific inhibitor (iodotubercidin) or small interfering RNA (siRNA), abolished or reduced the compound's antiviral activity in cell culture. Studies of rats showed that 14 C-labeled compound was converted to mono-, di-, and triphosphate metabolites in vivo. Collectively, the results suggest that this adenosine inhibitor is phosphorylated to an active (triphosphate) form which functions as a chain terminator for viral RNA synthesis.The family Flaviviridae consists of three genera, Flavivirus, Pestivirus, and Hepacivirus. Many viruses from the genus Flavivirus are arthropod-borne and cause significant human diseases. The four serotypes of dengue virus (DENV) alone pose a health threat to 2.5 billion people worldwide, leading to 50 to 100 million human infections and 500,000 cases of dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF) and dengue shock syndrome (DSS) each year (11). Besides DENV, other flaviviruses, such as West Nile virus (WNV), Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV), yellow fever virus (YFV), and tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV), also cause frequent outbreaks throughout the world. No clinically approved antiviral therapy is currently available for treatment of flavivirus infections. Human vaccines are available only for YFV, JEV, and TBEV. The development of a successful DENV vaccine has been challenging due to the facts that (i) the vaccine should simultaneously induce a long-lasting protection against all four DENV serotypes and (ii) an incompletely immunized individual may be sensitized to the lifethreatening DHF or DSS. The challenge associated with the development of a vaccine underlines the importance of antiviral development for DENV and other flaviviruses.The flavivirus genome is a single-strand RNA of plus-sense polarity. The single open reading frame from the 11-kb viral genome encodes three structural proteins (capsid [C], premembrane [prM], and envelope [E]) and seven nonstructural proteins (NS1, NS2A, NS2B, NS3, NS4A, NS4B, and NS5). Nonstructural proteins are responsible for viral replication. Of those, NS3 and NS5 have enzymatic activities. The N-terminal domain of NS3 (with NS2B as a cofactor) functions as a serine protease, and the C-terminal domain acts as an RNA helicase, an RNA triphosphatase, and an NTPase (10,34,35). The N-...