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COVID-19 therapy: What weapons do we bring into battle?
Sinara Mônica Vitalino de Almeida1, José Cleberson Santos Soares2, Keriolaine Lima Dos Santos2
1Laboratório de Biologia Molecular, Universidade de Pernambuco, Garanhuns, PE, Brazil; Laboratório de Química e Inovação Terapêutica (LQIT) - Departamento de Antibióticos, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Recife, PE, Brazil; Laboratório de Imunopatologia Keizo Asami (LIKA), Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Recife, PE, Brazil.
Abstract:
Urgent treatments, in any modality, to fight SARS-CoV-2 infections are desired by society in general, by health professionals, by Estate-leaders and, mainly, by the scientific community, because one thing is certain amidst the numerous uncertainties regarding COVID-19: knowledge is the means to discover or to produce an effective treatment against this global disease. Scientists from several areas in the world are still committed to this mission, as shown by the accelerated scientific production in the first half of 2020 with over 25,000 published articles related to the new coronavirus. Three great lines of publications related to COVID-19 were identified for building this article: The first refers to knowledge production concerning the virus and pathophysiology of COVID-19; the second regards efforts to produce vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 at a speed without precedent in the history of science; the third comprehends the attempts to find a marketed drug that can be used to treat COVID-19 by drug repurposing. In this review, the drugs that have been repurposed so far are grouped according to their chemical class. Their structures will be presented to provide better understanding of their structural similarities and possible correlations with mechanisms of actions. This can help identifying anti-SARS-CoV-2 promising therapeutic agents.
Insights
Finding effective treatments for SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) is crucial. This review analyzes repurposed drugs by chemical class to identify promising therapeutic agents against the novel coronavirus.
Area of Science:
- Virology
- Pathophysiology
- Pharmacology
Background:
- The global community urgently seeks effective treatments for SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19).
- Accelerated scientific research produced over 25,000 articles on COVID-19 in early 2020.
- Research focuses on virus knowledge, vaccine development, and drug repurposing for COVID-19 treatment.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review and categorize repurposed drugs for COVID-19 treatment.
- To analyze drug structures for potential therapeutic mechanisms against SARS-CoV-2.
- To identify promising drug candidates for anti-SARS-CoV-2 therapies.
Main Methods:
- Literature review of scientific publications on COVID-19.
- Identification and grouping of repurposed drugs based on chemical class.
- Presentation of drug structures to explore similarities and mechanisms of action.
Main Results:
- Categorization of repurposed drugs by chemical class.
- Analysis of structural similarities among repurposed drugs.
- Potential correlations between drug structures and anti-SARS-CoV-2 mechanisms identified.
Conclusions:
- Drug repurposing is a key strategy in the fight against COVID-19.
- Understanding drug structures aids in identifying effective SARS-CoV-2 therapeutic agents.
- This review provides a foundation for selecting promising candidates for further investigation.