Exploring natural plant compounds against the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein: An analytical and computational approach for drug discovery

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic's unexpected outbreak devastated the global population on all fronts produced by SARS-CoV-2, a new coronavirus that the human immune system had never encountered. Expert opinion nearly instantly agreed that a mass immunization program would be the most efficient means of combating the epidemic by artificially boosting immunity. Nevertheless, it took over a year for the first COVID-19 vaccine to be approved. Definite treatment to manage COVID-19 is still a challenge. Aspirational eyes are being focused on phytoconstituents to eliminate the COVID-19 pandemic. The review's insights include a diverse natural product that appears to be significantly acting on potential host-based and virus-based targets. Lycorene, berberine, cannabidiol, baicalein, punicalagin, mangiferin, and silymarin are some compounds that are being used to manage the COVID-19 pandemic. The first barrier is broken by spike proteins at the membrane with ACE 2 and TMPRSS 2 receptors, where these targets are specifically inhibited by emodin and bromhexine, respectively. Solanum trilobatum L., Alnus japonica, Angelica keiskei (Miq.) Koidz., and Glycyrrhiza spp. are a few plants that act on CLpro and PLpro proteinases. Helicase, part of RTC, can be blocked by scutellarein, isolated from Scutellaria baicalensis Georgi. Besides synthetic drugs, we must also consciously concentrate on the medicinal values of plant-based resources to defeat any pandemic situation. The review here anchors distinct analytical tools used in diagnosis. Techniques like Mass spectrometry and Nuclear Magnetic Resonance fill up the potential loopholes in conventional RT-PCR.