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Joana Duarte Da Rocha Pereira

Joana Duarte Da Rocha Pereira
research group Johan Neyts
Rega - Herestraat 49 - box 1043
3000 Leuven
Belgium
room: 08.A152

tel: +32 16 32 18 76 or +32 16 37 90 20
contact

Joana Rocha-Pereira studied Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of Porto, Portugal. After graduating in 2007, she joined the group of Prof. Maria de São José Nascimento (University of Porto, Portugal) whose research focuses on the study of human enteric viruses (epidemiology, transmission, detection in food and water). Joana obtained a second Master’s degree in Clinical Analysis (2009) and a PhD (2013) for her work on the identification of small molecule inhibitors of the replication of noroviruses, the nr. 1 cause of foodborne outbreaks of gastroenteritis around the world. During this period, Joana was able to conciliate her research activities with a part-time Assistant Lecturer position, teaching Virology to future pharmacists, biochemists, etc.

In August 2013 she joined the group of Prof. Johan Neyts, at the Rega Institute. She optimized norovirus mouse models of infection in which she demonstrated -for the first time- that a small-molecule inhibitor is able to protect against norovirus-induced diarrhea and mortality. The more recent observation that transmission of norovirus can be prevented through prophylaxis of non-infected animals also constitutes an important step towards the feasibility of using antiviral drugs for the treatment/prophylaxis of norovirus infections.

Since January 2015, Joana Rocha-Pereira is a Marie Curie fellow of the William Harvey International Translational Research Academy (WHRI-ACADEMY), with the project STRONG (Small molecule inhibitors for the TReatment Of Norovirus-induced Gastroenteritis). She is involved in the FP7 projects SILVER and CCHFever, and in the Leverage project (IOF HB-14-00425) entitled “Development of potent antivirals for the treatment and prophylaxis of norovirus infections”.

 

Selected recent publications

Ter Horst et al. Screening and in vitro antiviral assessment of small molecules against fluorescent protein-expressing Bunyamwera virus in a cell-based assay using high-content imaging. 

Pinto et al. Broad betacoronavirus neutralization by a stem helix–specific human antibody.

Dos Santos Ferreira et al. Current and Future Antiviral Strategies to Tackle Gastrointestinal Viral Infections.

Tortorici et al. Broad sarbecovirus neutralization by a human monoclonal antibody.

Starr et al. SARS-CoV-2 RBD antibodies that maximize breadth and resistance to escape.

Abdelnabi et al. Molnupiravir inhibits the replication of the emerging SARS-CoV2 variants of concern (VoCs) in a hamster infection model.

Do et al. A robust SARS-CoV-2 replication model in primary human epithelial cells at the air liquid interface to assess antiviral agents.

Martí-Marí et al. Double Arylation of the Indole Side Chain of Tri- and Tetrapodal Tryptophan Derivatives Renders Highly Potent HIV-1 and EV-A71 Entry Inhibitors†.

Vanderbeke et al. Monocyte-driven atypical cytokine storm and aberrant neutrophil activation as key mediators of COVID-19 disease severity.

Van Dycke et al. Assessment of the anti-norovirus activity in cell culture using the mouse norovirus: Identification of active compounds.

Persoons et al. Broad spectrum anti-coronavirus activity of a series of anti-malaria quinoline analogues.

Lloréns-Rico et alMechanical ventilation affects respiratory microbiome of COVID-19 patients and its interactions with the host.

Van Damme et al. In vitro activity of itraconazole against SARS-CoV-2.

Abdelnabi et al. Comparing infectivity and virulence of emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants in Syrian hamsters.

Dallmeier et al. COVID-19 and the intensive care unit: vaccines to the rescue.

Boudewijns et al. A novel therapeutic hepatitis B vaccine candidate induces strong polyfunctional cytotoxic T cell responses in mice.

Dai et al. Design, Synthesis, and Biological Evaluation of Peptidomimetic Aldehydes as Broad-Spectrum Inhibitors against Enterovirus and SARS-CoV-2.

 

Van Dycke et al. Infection of zebrafish larvae with human norovirus and evaluation of the in vivo efficacy of small-molecule inhibitors.

McCallum et al. N-terminal domain antigenic mapping reveals a site of vulnerability for SARS-CoV-2.

Liesenborghs et al. Itraconazole for COVID-19: preclinical studies and a proof-of-concept randomized clinical trial.

Schepens et al. Drug development of an affinity enhanced, broadly neutralizing heavy chain only antibody that restricts SARS-CoV-2 in hamsters.

Baggen et al. Genome-wide CRISPR screening identifies TMEM106B as a proviral host factor for SARS-CoV-2.

Foo et al. Nelfinavir markedly improves lung pathology in SARS-CoV-2-infected Syrian hamsters despite a lack of an antiviral effect.

Abdelnabi et al. The combined treatment of Molnupiravir and Favipiravir results in a marked potentiation of efficacy in a SARS-CoV2 hamster infection model through an increased frequency of mutations in the viral genome.

Abdelnabi et al. Comparative infectivity and pathogenesis of emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants in Syrian hamsters.

Vandyck et al. ALG-097111, a potent and selective SARS-CoV-2 3-chymotrypsin-like cysteine protease inhibitor exhibits in vivo efficacy in a Syrian Hamster model.

Aubry et al. Recent African strains of Zika virus display higher transmissibility and fetal pathogenicity than Asian strains.

Wauters et al. Discriminating mild from critical COVID-19 by innate and adaptive immune single-cell profiling of bronchoalveolar lavages.

Jansen et al. Identification of host-factors binding to dengue and Zika virus subgenomic RNA by efficient yeast three-hybrid screens of the human ORFeome.

Sanchez Felipe et al. A single-dose live-attenuated YF17D-vectored SARS-CoV2 vaccine candidate.

Boudewijns et al. STAT2 signaling restricts viral dissemination but drives severe pneumonia in SARS-CoV-2 infected hamsters.

Fernández-García et al. Diketo acids inhibit the cap-snatching endonuclease of several Bunyavirales.

Tortorici et al. Ultrapotent human antibodies protect against SARS-CoV-2 challenge via multiple mechanisms.

Li et al. A Dengue type 2 reporter virus assay amenable to high-throughput screening.

Kaptein et al. Favipiravir at high doses has potent antiviral activity in SARS-CoV-2−infected hamsters, whereas hydroxychloroquine lacks activity.

Torneri et al. A prospect on the use of antiviral drugs to control local outbreaks of COVID-19.

Abdelnabi et al. A novel class of chikungunya virus small molecule inhibitors that targets the viral capping machinery

Kum et al. chimeric yellow fever-Zika virus vaccine candidate fully protects against yellow fever virus infection in mice

Abdelnabi et al. Antiviral drug discovery against arthritogenic alphaviruses: tools and molecular targets

Kum et al. Limited evolution of the yellow fever virus 17d in a mouse infection model

Van Dycke et al. A robust human norovirus replication model in zebrafish larvae

Sun et al. Intra-host emergence of an enterovirus A71 variant with enhanced PSGL1 usage and neurovirulence.

Abdelnabi et al. A novel druggable interprotomer pocket in the capsid of rhino- and enteroviruses.

Sun et al.  Viral engagement with host (co-)receptors blocked by a novel class of tryptophan dendrimers that targets the 5-fold-axis of the enterovirus-A71 capsid.

Jacobs et al. A viral polymerase inhibitor reduces Zika virus replication in the reproductive organs of male mice.

ter Horst et al. Structural and functional similarities in bunyaviruses: Perspectives for pan‐bunya antivirals.