Doxycycline and Ribavirin ! Is this combination a new hope for getting rid of the deadly Chikungunya?

Being vector borne, chikungunya is being a serious threat in microbiology. It is transmitted by Aedes aegypti. Majority of the cases has been recorded from tropical countries. Aedes albopictus has now joined the game in countries of Europe and North America. 

The treatment options depends greatly on the symptoms of the disease. As the need for novel treatment is high, newer therapies are been probed by researchers. Minimal side effects with better effect is the prime aim of the drug design in general. Doxycycline (DOXY), a semi-synthetic tetracycline antibiotic with significant effect against bacterial infections acts against the protein synthesis. DOXY, a potential drug in combination with oseltamivir provided an effective intervention strategy against swine flu infection. It was also proved that DOXY was found to exhibit significant inhibitory effects against anti-murine retrovirus.

In a recent study published in PLOS One http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0126360, they have established that a combination of DOXY and RIBA showed potent antiviral activities by inhibiting entry and replication of CHIKV in Vero cells, and reduced viral infectivity in vitroand in vivo. The study convincely affirmed that  DOXY exhibited significant anti-CHIKV activity that acted by impairing viral entry of Vero cells. DOXY+RIBA reduced viral infectivity and replication in infected cells. Further experimental and clinical studies should be carried out to investigate their potential utilization for the attenuation of the clinical symptoms pathognomonic to CHIKV disease.