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In what is being hailed as a significant breakthrough in the battle against the deadly Ebola virus, researchers have found an unlikely treatment source - an everyday ibuprofen painkiller.
Using Diamond Light Source, a light 10 billion times brighter than the Sun, the team was able to analyse the structure of the Ebola virus at a far higher resolution than had previously been possible.
The researchers found ibuprofen, as well as cancer drug Toremifene, were able to bind to a protein on the surface of Ebola, preventing infection. The team described this as being able to "disable" the virus.
Further work will be needed to analyse the structures of both the virus and the drugs, as well as how they interact, but the team is hopeful the research could be built upon to develop anti-Ebola treatments.
"These complex structures reveal the mechanism of inhibition and may guide the development of more powerful anti-EBOV drugs," the team wrote in Nature.
No drug has yet been developed that can stop Ebola. Nearly 11,000 people died of the disease in West Africa alone, with 30,000 infected.
Many victims have since been infected with post-Ebola syndrome, which has lead to loss of sight and sickness.
This article was originally published by WIRED UK
