Acriflavine (ACF) has been known for years as an antibacterial drug. The identification of key oncogenic mechanisms has brought, in recent years, a significant increase in studies on ACF as a multipurpose drug that would improve the prognosis for cancer patients. ACF interferes with the expression of the hypoxia inducible factor, thus acting on metastatic niches of tumors and significantly enhancing the effects of other anticancer therapies. It has been recognized as the most potent HIF-1 inhibitor out of the 336 drugs approved by the FDA. This work presents up-to-date knowledge about the mechanisms of action of ACF and its related prodrug systems in the context of anticancer and SARS-CoV-2 inhibitory properties. It explains the multitask nature of this drug and suggests mechanisms of ACF’s action on the coronavirus. Other recent reports on ACF-based systems as potential antibacterial and antiviral drugs are also described.

中文翻译：

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吖啶黄，一种用于生物医学应用的吖啶衍生物：现有技术

多年来，吖啶黄 (ACF) 作为一种抗菌药物而广为人知。近年来，关键致癌机制的确定带来了对 ACF 作为一种可改善癌症患者预后的多用途药物的研究显着增加。ACF 干扰缺氧诱导因子的表达，从而作用于肿瘤的转移生态位并显着增强其他抗癌疗法的效果。在 FDA 批准的 336 种药物中，它被认为是最有效的 HIF-1 抑制剂。这项工作提供了关于 ACF 及其相关前药系统在抗癌和 SARS-CoV-2 抑制特性背景下的作用机制的最新知识。它解释了这种药物的多任务性质，并提出了 ACF 对冠状病毒的作用机制。