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. 2020 Jan-Feb;52(1):56-65.
doi: 10.4103/ijp.IJP_115_20. Epub 2020 Mar 11.

Drug targets for corona virus: A systematic review

Manisha Prajapat  1 , Phulen Sarma  1 , Nishant Shekhar  1 , Pramod Avti  2 , Shweta Sinha  3 , Hardeep Kaur  1 , Subodh Kumar  1 , Anusuya Bhattacharyya  4 , Harish Kumar  1 , Seema Bansal  1 , Bikash Medhi  1
Affiliations

Drug targets for corona virus: A systematic review

Manisha Prajapat et al. Indian J Pharmacol. 2020 Jan-Feb.

Abstract

The 2019-novel coronavirus (nCoV) is a major source of disaster in the 21th century. However, the lack of specific drugs to prevent/treat an attack is a major need at this current point of time. In this regard, we conducted a systematic review to identify major druggable targets in coronavirus (CoV). We searched PubMed and RCSB database with keywords HCoV, NCoV, corona virus, SERS-CoV, MERS-CoV, 2019-nCoV, crystal structure, X-ray crystallography structure, NMR structure, target, and drug target till Feb 3, 2020. The search identified seven major targets (spike protein, envelop protein, membrane protein, protease, nucleocapsid protein, hemagglutinin esterase, and helicase) for which drug design can be considered. There are other 16 nonstructural proteins (NSPs), which can also be considered from the drug design perspective. The major structural proteins and NSPs may serve an important role from drug design perspectives. However, the occurrence of frequent recombination events is a major deterrent factor toward the development of CoV-specific vaccines/drugs.

Keywords: Coronavirus; Middle East respiratory syndrome; drug targets; severe acute respiratory syndrome.

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Conflict of interest statement

There are no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Structural details of Coronavirus
Figure 2
Figure 2
The life cycle of CoV in host cells. The S proteins of CoV binds to cellular receptor angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) which is followed by entry of the viral RNA genome into the host cell and translation of structural and non structural proteins (NSP) follows. ORF1a and ORF1ab are translated to produce pp1a and pp1ab polyproteins, which are cleaved by the proteases that are encoded by ORF1a to yield 16 non-structural proteins. This is followed by assembly and budding into the lumen of the ERGIC (Endoplasmic Reticulum Golgi Intermediate Compartment). Virions are then released from the infected cell through exocytosis. S: spike, E: envelope, M: membrane, N: nucleocapsid. PP: polyproteins, ORF: Open reading frame, CoV: coronavirus
Figure 3
Figure 3
Flowchart
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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