Discovering novel multi-target compounds against aspartyl viral polymerases via ligand-based pharmacophore and...

Viral polymerases are key targets for antiviral drug development due to their crucial role in viral replication. This study seeks to discover novel inhibitors using virtual screening of a 200,583-member ZINC-based library, targeting three aspartyl-based viral polymerases: SARS-CoV-2 RdRp, HIV-1 RT, and HCV NS5B. In this line, applying RO5, drug-likeness, and PAINS filters, leading to a pharmacophore model with Ribavirin as the benchmark. Four ligands (Ligands 1-4) with the highest binding affinities were identified via molecular docking and ADME/T studies. These candidates were then subjected to 200 ns molecular dynamics (MD) simulations and binding free-energy calculations to evaluate binding stability. The computational analyses demonstrated that all four ligands stably bound the polymerase active sites and induced some conformational changes. According to MM/PBSA results, Lig-2 and Lig-1 surpass Ribavirin in SARS-CoV-2 RdRp and HIV-1 RT complexes, while Ribavirin showed the strongest binding in HCV NS5B. ADME/T studies supported the pharmacological potential of the ligands, with Lig-2 emerging as a promising lead against all targets, and Lig-1, Lig-3, and Lig-4 showing potential for multi-target antiviral development.