Methods of inhibiting poxvirus growth

This disclosure ascribes new functions to derivatives of tetralin, anthraquinone, naphthylamine, tri-amino-pyrimidine, xanthen-3-one, and/or cinnamic acid (including, for example, NSC270718R, NSC117285R, NSC170008Y, NSC306711P, NSC119913X, NSC119915Z, NSC119911V, NSC119910U, NSC128437O, NSC125908P, NSC9600Q, or NSC13778J, each obtained from the Structure Diversity Set, National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute, Developmental Therapeutics Program). These compounds are shown to be effective inhibitors of viral essential protein kinases (such as poxvirus B1 and/or F10 protein kinases). Exemplary chemical structures for viral protein kinase (VPK) inhibitors are provided, as are methods of using such compounds, for instance, to inhibit VPK activity and/or poxvirus growth, and/or for the treatment of poxvirus infection. Also provided are pharmaceutical compositions including disclosed VPK inhibitors.