N4-Hydroxyctidine, or EIDD-1931, is a ribonucleoside analog which induces mutations in RNA virions.[A193008,A193011] N4-hydroxycytidine was first described in the literature in 1980 as a potent mutagen of bacteria and phage.[A193023] It has shown antiviral activity against Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus,[A193008] and the human coronavirus HCoV-NL63 _in vitro_.[A193017] N4-hydroxycytodine has been shown to inhibit SARS-CoV-2 as well as other human and bat coronaviruses in mice and human airway epithelial cells.[A193014] It is orally bioavailable in mice and distributes into tissue before becoming the active 5’-triphosphate form, which is incorporated into the genome of new virions, resulting in the accumulation of inactivating mutations.[A193011] In non-human primates, N4-hydroxycytidine was poorly orally bioavailable.[A193026] A [remdesivir] resistant mutant mouse hepatitis virus has also been shown to have increased sensitivity to N4-hydroxycytidine.[A193014] The prodrug of N4-hydroxycytidine, [EIDD-2801], is also being investigated for its broad spectrum activity against the coronavirus family of viruses.[A193014]
Synonyms
Beta-D-N4-hydroxycytidine
N4-Hydroxycytidine
beta-D-N-4-Hydroxycytidine
β-D-N4-hydroxycytidine
NHC
4-N-Hydroxycytidine
N(4)-Hydroxycytidine
Uridine, 4-oxime
Indication
N4-hydroxycytidine and its prodrug [EIDD-2801] is being studied for its activity against a number of viral infections including influenza, MERS-CoV, and SARS-CoV-2.[A193014, A193029]
