Bovine Lactoferrin Activity Against Chikungunya and Zika Viruses

Chikungunya (CHIKV) and Zika (ZIKV) viruses are two arboviruses which have recently broken their sylvatic isolation and gone into a rampant spreading among humans in some urban areas of the world, specially in Latin America. Given the huge burden that Chikungunya and Zika fevers impose to public health in the affected countries and the lack of effective interventions against them, the aim of this work was to evaluate the antiviral potential of bovine lactoferrin (bLf) - an iron-binding glycoprotein with broad-spectrum antimicrobial properties - in both CHIKV and ZIKV infections. The general antiviral activity of bLf was assessed by plaque assays, and the inhibitory effects of the protein on