SARS-CoV-2 Inhibitors from Nigella Sativa

The recently encountered severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 creates huge predicaments among various countries. Lack of specific treatment of COVID-19 disease demands urgency in drug design against SARS-CoV-2 targets. Nigella sativa the miraculous herb native to South and Southwest Asia and belonging to the family Ranunculaceae, due to its beneficial bioactive properties, was used by us for performing in silico study to analyze the potential of its compounds so that they can target and inhibit SARS-COV-2 proteins including its main protease, the papain-like protease, its helicase, and also the RNA-dependent RNApolymerase, RNA-binding protein, Endoribonuclease, receptor-binding domain, and the RNA-binding domain of nucleocapsid phosphoprotein. The procedure of molecular docking was done with the help of AutoDock-Vina 1.1.2. and along with it the ADMET properties of the best suited ligands were found and Lipinski screening was performed. Among 58 ligands screened, various compounds showed binding energy less than the standard drug chloroquine. Three compounds alpha-hederin, rutin, and nigellamine A2 had the least binding energy with the specific SARS-Cov-2 proteins suggesting their best potential as SARS-CoV-2 inhibitor. Hence, in the future, studies including the in vitro and also the in vivo studies can be carried out for analyzing their true potential and encourage use of nutraceuticals like Nigella sativa to inhibit this virus.