Recent Advances in SARS-CoV-2 Main Protease Inhibitors: From Nirmatrelvir to Future Perspectives

Overview

Journal Biomolecules

Publisher MDPI

Specialties Biochemistry
Molecular Biology

Date 2023 Sep 28

PMID 37759739

Authors

Andrea Citarella

Alessandro Dimasi

Davide Moi

Daniele Passarella

Angela Scala

Anna Piperno

Nicola Micale

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

The main protease (M) plays a pivotal role in the replication of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and is considered a highly conserved viral target. Disruption of the catalytic activity of M produces a detrimental effect on the course of the infection, making this target one of the most attractive for the treatment of COVID-19. The current success of the SARS-CoV-2 M inhibitor Nirmatrelvir, the first oral drug for the treatment of severe forms of COVID-19, has further focused the attention of researchers on this important viral target, making the search for new M inhibitors a thriving and exciting field for the development of antiviral drugs active against SARS-CoV-2 and related coronaviruses.

Citing Articles

Research Progress on the Structure and Function, Immune Escape Mechanism, Antiviral Drug Development Methods, and Clinical Use of SARS-CoV-2 M.

Ren J, Zhang Z, Xia Y, Zhao D, Li D, Zhang S Molecules. 2025; 30(2).

PMID: 39860219 PMC: 11767629. DOI: 10.3390/molecules30020351.

Backstage Heroes-Yeast in COVID-19 Research.

Grabinski W, Karachitos A, Kicinska A Int J Mol Sci. 2024; 25(23.

PMID: 39684373 PMC: 11640846. DOI: 10.3390/ijms252312661.

Insights into SARS-CoV-2: Small-Molecule Hybrids for COVID-19 Treatment.

Navacchia M, Cinti C, Marchesi E, Perrone D Molecules. 2024; 29(22).

PMID: 39598790 PMC: 11596935. DOI: 10.3390/molecules29225403.

ClickGen: Directed exploration of synthesizable chemical space via modular reactions and reinforcement learning.

Wang M, Li S, Wang J, Zhang O, Du H, Jiang D Nat Commun. 2024; 15(1):10127.

PMID: 39578485 PMC: 11584676. DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-54456-y.

Advances in the Search for SARS-CoV-2 M and PL Inhibitors.

Diogo M, Cabral A, de Oliveira R Pathogens. 2024; 13(10).

PMID: 39452697 PMC: 11510351. DOI: 10.3390/pathogens13100825.

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