3β-Acetoxy-21α-H-hop-22(29)ene, a novel multitargeted phytocompound against SARS-CoV-2: in silico screening

The present pandemic disease COVID-19 demands an urgent need for more efficient antiviral drugs against SARS-CoV-2. Computational drug designing and discovery enable us to explore ethnomedicinal plants as a source of various lead molecules that can be used against present and future pathogens. Adiantum latifolium Lam., a common fern, is resistant to pathogens mainly due to the presence of various phytochemicals having antimicrobial properties. In our previous study, 3β-acetoxy-21α-H-hop-22(29)ene, a terpenoid has been characterized from the methanol extract of leaves of A. latifolium. The manuscript evaluates the antiviral potency of the compound against SARS-CoV-2 through molecular docking method. Proteins essential for SARS-CoV-2 multiplication in host cells are the target sites. The study revealed strong binding affinity of the compound for all the ten proteins selected, including seven nonstructural proteins, two structural proteins and one receptor protein, with a binding energy of -4.67 to -8.76 kcal/mol. MDS and MMPBSA analysis of the best ranked complex further confirmed the results. The multitargeted compound can be considered as a natural lead molecule in drug designing against COVID-19, but requires wet-lab experimentation and clinical trials.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.