Herrmann Lab
We are interested in the discovery and development of new potent antiviral compounds and in unravelling their mechanism of action to effectively fight different kinds of viruses that caused pandemics in the past (e.g. HIV, SARS-CoV-2) or have the potential to lead to future pandemics (e.g. Dengue virus).
We are interested in the discovery and development of new potent antiviral compounds and in unravelling their mechanism of action to effectively fight different kinds of viruses that caused pandemics in the past (e.g. HIV, SARS-CoV-2) or have the potential to lead to future pandemics (e.g. Dengue virus).
About our research
Unexpectedly emerging pandemic events – like SARS-CoV-2 or Spanish flu – have always been major challenges for humanity in general and for modern and highly complex societies with globally interwoven supply chains in particular. The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic was dominating the world events in the early ‘20s of this century and had also led to a major shift in the focus of scientific research – there was the effort to end the pandemic, but now there is also the urge to prepare for the future events. In addition to vaccines as means of pandemic control, "first line" broad-spectrum antiviral drugs need to be developed to directly combat various classes of emerging viruses to bridge the time until first vaccines become available.
Our goal is to establish a drug discovery screening platform to explore the antiviral activity of potential drug candidates against viruses that belong to completely different virus families. Furthermore, we aim to identify the modes of action of resulting drug candidates revealing broad spectrum antiviral activity. This mode of action knowledge will be used to optimize and transform drug candidates into lead compounds for complementary studies in animal models. As distinct virus families rely on different ways to replicate inside their host, it is of high interest to investigate the similarities of viruses counteracted by potential broad-spectrum antivirals and to use these findings to define new antiviral targets.
Publications
Read more2024 Scientific Article in Virology Journal