ABSTRACT
Viral infections remain a major global health problem and a significant cause of mortality. Several infectious agents are regularly transmitted to humans from other species and established in the community resulting in pandemic outbreaks. They can lead to severe and long-lasting socio-economic consequences. COVID-19 infection with no known-specific drugs has impacted humankind and become beyond precedence. Even though we have safe and effective vaccines for a few viral diseases, there will always be a delay between the new pandemic outbreak and effective vaccine delivery. Hence, antiviral drugs alone or in combination with repurposed existing drugs serve as primary means to keep us safe, as evidenced by the current pandemics. With the increase in drug resistance, the severity of viral infections and constant viral replication necessitate novel, secure, and target-specific alternative approaches to prevent infectious agents. Recent advances in nanotechnology have shown significant promises in developing nanocarriers to address the shortcomings of small molecule antiviral compounds. This chapter comprises a detailed description of different classes of antivirals inhibiting various stages of the viral life cycle, the application of nanoparticle-based delivery systems to overcome the current challenges limiting antiviral efficacy, and advances in therapeutic approaches of nano-based small molecule viral inhibitors against emerging viruses.
