The current COVID-19 pandemic, caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), is an enormous threat to public health. The SARS-CoV-2 3C-like protease (3CLpro), which is critical for viral replication and transcription, has been recognized as an ideal drug target. Herein, it is identified that three herbal compounds, Salvianolic acid A (SAA), (-)-Epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), and Oridonin, directly inhibit the activity of SARS-CoV-2 3CLpro. Further, blocking SARS-CoV-2 infectivity by Oridonin is confirmed in cell-based experiments. By solving the crystal structure of 3CLpro in complex with Oridonin and comparing it to that of other ligands with 3CLpro, it is identified that Oridonin binds at the 3CLpro catalytic site by forming a C-S covalent bond, which is confirmed by mass spectrometry and kinetic study, blocking substrate binding through a nonpeptidomimetic covalent binding mode. Thus, Oridonin is a novel candidate to develop a new antiviral treatment for COVID-19.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/smsc.202100124 | DOI Listing |
Int J Biol Macromol
January 2025
Department of Chemical Sciences, University of Naples "Federico II", Via Cintia, 21, 80126 Napoli, Italy; CEINGE Advanced Biotechnologies s.c.a r.l. "Franco Salvatore", Via Gaetano Salvatore 486, 80131 Napoli, Italy. Electronic address:
SARS-CoV-2 encodes a 3C-like protease (3CL) that is essential for viral replication. This cysteine protease cleaves viral polyproteins to release functional nonstructural proteins, making it a prime target for antiviral drug development. We investigated the inhibitory effects of halicin, a known c-Jun N-terminal kinase inhibitor, on 3CL.
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January 2025
Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of Delaware, Newark, United States.
The SARS-CoV-2 main protease (M or Nsp5) is critical for production of viral proteins during infection and, like many viral proteases, also targets host proteins to subvert their cellular functions. Here, we show that the human tRNA methyltransferase TRMT1 is recognized and cleaved by SARS-CoV-2 M. TRMT1 installs the ,-dimethylguanosine (m2,2G) modification on mammalian tRNAs, which promotes cellular protein synthesis and redox homeostasis.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFVirulence
December 2025
College of Veterinary Medicine, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin, PR China.
Nat Commun
January 2025
Department of Chemistry, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA.
Variants of SARS-CoV-2 have continued to emerge across the world and cause hundreds of deaths each week. Due to the limited efficacy of vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 and resistance to current therapies, additional anti-viral therapeutics with pan-coronavirus activity are of high interest. Here, we screen 2.
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December 2024
Laboratory of Bioinorganic Chemistry, Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, University of Bologna, 40127, Bologna, Italy.
This manuscript details the application of Isothermal Titration Calorimetry (ITC) to characterize the kinetics of 3CL, the main protease from the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome CoronaVirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), and its inhibition by Ensitrelvir, a known non-covalent inhibitor. 3CL is essential for producing the proteins necessary for viral infection, which led to the COVID-19 pandemic. The ITC-based assay provided rapid and reliable measurements of 3CL activity, allowing for the direct derivation of the kinetic enzymatic constants K and k by monitoring the thermal power required to maintain a constant temperature as the substrate is consumed.
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