Apr 1, 2020 05:20 PM
Here’s a list of some of the contenders.
COVID-19 Treatment and Vaccine Tracker
They all look pretty promising but there was an older study on an antiviral medication that was using modified sugars that I thought looked hopeful. I could have missed it but I didn’t see on the list.
Here’s the paper that I was interested in.
New Treatment Made From Sugar Could Help Fight Viral Outbreaks
"An international team of researchers has created a new antiviral material, essentially made from sugar, that is able to “destroy viruses on contact and may help in the fight against viral outbreaks.”
The scientists, from The University of Manchester, the University of Geneva (UNIGE) and the EPFL in Lausanne, Switzerland, say that the treatment shows promise in treating herpes simplex, respiratory syncytial virus, hepatitis C, HIV, and Zika virus - to name a few.
Current antiviral drugs work by inhibiting virus growth, but they are not always reliable as viruses can mutate and become resistant to these treatments.
This time around, the team showed that the outer shell of a virus can be disrupted using modified sugar molecules, thereby destroying the infectious particles on contact, as oppose to simply restricting its growth.
In work published in Science Advances, the team showed that they successfully engineered new modified molecules using natural glucose derivatives, known as cyclodextrins. The molecules attract viruses before breaking them down on contact, destroying the virus and fighting the infection.
The team has “successfully engineered a new molecule, which is a modified sugar that shows broad-spectrum antiviral properties,” explained Dr Samuel Jones, from The University of Manchester. “The antiviral mechanism is virucidal meaning that viruses struggle to develop resistance. As this is a new type of antiviral and one of the first to ever show broad-spectrum efficacy, it has potential to be a game changer in treating viral infections.”
The University of Manchester says that the molecule is patented and a spin-out company is being set up to continue pushing this new antiviral towards real-world use."
Here’s the original paper.
Modified cyclodextrins as broad-spectrum antivirals
Furin Cleavage Site
"It is important to note that other beta coronaviruses do not contain this cleavage site. SARS-CoV, which is closely related to the newest SARS-CoV-2 strain, does not bear a cleavage site."
How Furin and ACE2 Interact with the Spike Protein on SARS-CoV-2
The spike protein attaches to our cells and allows the virus to enter and inject its RNA. The insertion of its RNA building blocks adds four amino acids and creates a site in the protein for an enzyme (furin). Furin is made in our cells. The furin cleavage site had been particularly interesting to the researches. It's this ability that the virus acquired that makes it more contagious.
The insertion also creates places where sugar molecules can attach to the spike protein, which creates a protective shield that protects the virus from our immune system. I guess you could call it "sugar coating". The sugars (glycoproteins) on the spike acts as camouflage. Knowing what to attack requires immune cells to distinguish self from foreign, and sugars play a key role, not only in pathogens, but cancer cells, as well.
COVID-19 Treatment and Vaccine Tracker
They all look pretty promising but there was an older study on an antiviral medication that was using modified sugars that I thought looked hopeful. I could have missed it but I didn’t see on the list.
Here’s the paper that I was interested in.
New Treatment Made From Sugar Could Help Fight Viral Outbreaks
"An international team of researchers has created a new antiviral material, essentially made from sugar, that is able to “destroy viruses on contact and may help in the fight against viral outbreaks.”
The scientists, from The University of Manchester, the University of Geneva (UNIGE) and the EPFL in Lausanne, Switzerland, say that the treatment shows promise in treating herpes simplex, respiratory syncytial virus, hepatitis C, HIV, and Zika virus - to name a few.
Current antiviral drugs work by inhibiting virus growth, but they are not always reliable as viruses can mutate and become resistant to these treatments.
This time around, the team showed that the outer shell of a virus can be disrupted using modified sugar molecules, thereby destroying the infectious particles on contact, as oppose to simply restricting its growth.
In work published in Science Advances, the team showed that they successfully engineered new modified molecules using natural glucose derivatives, known as cyclodextrins. The molecules attract viruses before breaking them down on contact, destroying the virus and fighting the infection.
The team has “successfully engineered a new molecule, which is a modified sugar that shows broad-spectrum antiviral properties,” explained Dr Samuel Jones, from The University of Manchester. “The antiviral mechanism is virucidal meaning that viruses struggle to develop resistance. As this is a new type of antiviral and one of the first to ever show broad-spectrum efficacy, it has potential to be a game changer in treating viral infections.”
The University of Manchester says that the molecule is patented and a spin-out company is being set up to continue pushing this new antiviral towards real-world use."
Here’s the original paper.
Modified cyclodextrins as broad-spectrum antivirals
Furin Cleavage Site
"It is important to note that other beta coronaviruses do not contain this cleavage site. SARS-CoV, which is closely related to the newest SARS-CoV-2 strain, does not bear a cleavage site."
How Furin and ACE2 Interact with the Spike Protein on SARS-CoV-2
The spike protein attaches to our cells and allows the virus to enter and inject its RNA. The insertion of its RNA building blocks adds four amino acids and creates a site in the protein for an enzyme (furin). Furin is made in our cells. The furin cleavage site had been particularly interesting to the researches. It's this ability that the virus acquired that makes it more contagious.
The insertion also creates places where sugar molecules can attach to the spike protein, which creates a protective shield that protects the virus from our immune system. I guess you could call it "sugar coating". The sugars (glycoproteins) on the spike acts as camouflage. Knowing what to attack requires immune cells to distinguish self from foreign, and sugars play a key role, not only in pathogens, but cancer cells, as well.