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Review
. 2023 Jun 20;28(12):4860.
doi: 10.3390/molecules28124860.

A Comprehensive Update of Various Attempts by Medicinal Chemists to Combat COVID-19 through Natural Products

Ayesha Rafiq  1 , Tooba Jabeen  1 , Sana Aslam  2 , Matloob Ahmad  1 , Usman Ali Ashfaq  3 , Noor Ul Amin Mohsin  4 , Magdi E A Zaki  5 , Sami A Al-Hussain  5
Affiliations
Review

A Comprehensive Update of Various Attempts by Medicinal Chemists to Combat COVID-19 through Natural Products

Ayesha Rafiq et al. Molecules. .

Abstract

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in a global panic because of its continual evolution and recurring spikes. This serious malignancy is caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Since the outbreak, millions of people have been affected from December 2019 till now, which has led to a great surge in finding treatments. Despite trying to handle the pandemic with the repurposing of some drugs, such as chloroquine, hydroxychloroquine, remdesivir, lopinavir, ivermectin, etc., against COVID-19, the SARS-CoV-2 virus continues its out-of-control spread. There is a dire need to identify a new regimen of natural products to combat the deadly viral disease. This article deals with the literature reports to date of natural products showing inhibitory activity towards SARS-CoV-2 through different approaches, such as in vivo, in vitro, and in silico studies. Natural compounds targeting the proteins of SARS-CoV-2-the main protease (Mpro), papain-like protease (PLpro), spike proteins, RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp), endoribonuclease, exoribonuclease, helicase, nucleocapsid, methyltransferase, adeno diphosphate (ADP) phosphatase, other nonstructural proteins, and envelope proteins-were extracted mainly from plants, and some were isolated from bacteria, algae, fungi, and a few marine organisms.

Keywords: COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; in silico; in vitro; in vivo; molecular docking; molecular docking simulations; natural products.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Structure of some prescribed repurposed drugs for SARS-CoV-2.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Natural compounds reported as SARS-CoV-2 inhibitors through in vivo studies.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Natural compounds reported as SARS-CoV-2 inhibitors through in vitro studies.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Natural compounds reported as SARS-CoV-2 inhibitors through in vitro and in silico studies.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Natural compounds as anti-SARS-CoV-2 agents.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Natural compounds as Mpro inhibitors.
Figure 7
Figure 7
Natural compounds acting as anti-COVID-19 agents by prohibiting Mpro.
Figure 8
Figure 8
Chemical structures of SARS-CoV-2 main protease inhibitors.
Figure 9
Figure 9
SARS-CoV-2 Mpro inhibition from natural sources.
Figure 9
Figure 9
SARS-CoV-2 Mpro inhibition from natural sources.
Figure 10
Figure 10
Chemical structures of potent inhibitors of Mpro.
Figure 11
Figure 11
Natural products as spike protein inhibitors.
Figure 11
Figure 11
Natural products as spike protein inhibitors.
Figure 12
Figure 12
Natural products as inhibitors of replication enzyme (RdRp) of SARS-CoV-2.
Figure 12
Figure 12
Natural products as inhibitors of replication enzyme (RdRp) of SARS-CoV-2.
Figure 13
Figure 13
Natural compound as nucleocapsid inhibitor of SARS-CoV-2.
Figure 14
Figure 14
Structures of the SARS-CoV-2 helicase inhibitors.
Figure 15
Figure 15
Natural compounds as SARS-CoV-2 anti-methyltransferase agents.
Figure 16
Figure 16
Exoribonuclease inhibitor of SARS-CoV-2.
Figure 17
Figure 17
Natural products acting as SARS-CoV-2 NSP inhibitors.
Figure 18
Figure 18
Envelope protein inhibitor of SARS-CoV-2.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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