**5. Conclusion**

Viral-induced protein cleavage and host protein degradation dysregulation play important roles in the pathogenesis of viral myocarditis and its subsequent progression to DCM. Identification of viral-induced protein cleavage fragments may allow early diagnosis of viral myocarditis, which opens up the optimal treatment window. A combination of antiviral therapies including specific viral protease inhibitors, proteasome inhibitors, and autophagy inhibitors presents new strategies for effective early viral clearance and minimization of viral-induced, inflammation-associated damage. Further studies employing system-like approaches, such as ubiquitomics, degradomics, and RNAi screens, are required to decipher the complex interactions between host and virus during different stages of viral myocarditis. Efforts in clarifying the precise functions and regulatory mechanisms of the host protein degradation systems in the disease progression of viral myocarditis will lead to novel therapeutic targets to improve treatment in different disease stages.
