Amidst a handful of drug testing and clinical trials, a similar research with the extract from edible seaweeds that surprisingly outperformed remdesivir for combating the COVID-19 complexities.
This study was published online in Cell Discovery, the research is the latest example of a decoy strategy researchers from the Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies (CBIS) at Rensselear Polytechnic Institute are developing against viruses like the novel coronavirus that spawned the current global health crisis.
In testing of antiviral effects on viruses that cause COVID-19, the current standard antiviral agent used to fight disease. Heparin, a common blood thinner, and heparin variants with anticoagulant properties removed, were performed equal to remdesivir to suppress SARS-CoV-2 infection in mammalian cells.
To get to know from the researchers about their findings, the lead researcher and a professor of chemical and biological engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Jonathan Dordick revealed:
“We are discovering how to prevent the viral infection, and that is the kind of knowledge we are going to need if we want to rapidly confront pandemics. The reality is that we do not have great antivirals. To protect ourselves against future pandemics, we are going to need an arsenal of approaches that we can quickly adapt to emerging viruses.”
The spike protein on the surface of SARS-CoV-2 clasps onto the ACE-2 receptor, a molecule on the surface of human cells. Once protected, the virus inside the cell incorporates its own genetic material, capturing the cellular machinery to produce replica viruses. Though the virus could just as easily be swayed to lock onto a decoy molecule that offers a similar fit. The neutralized virus would be trapped and eventually degrade naturally.
Previous research has shown this decoy technique works in trapping other viruses, including dengue, Zika, and influenza A. A different test discovered no cellular toxicity in any of the compounds, even at the highest concentrations tested.
“What interests us is a new way of getting at infection,” said Robert Linhardt, a Rensselaer professor of chemistry and chemical biology who is collaborating with Dordick to develop the decoy strategy. “The current thinking is that the COVID-19 infection starts in the nose, and either of these substances could be the basis for a nasal spray. If you could simply treat the infection early, or even treat before you have the infection, you would have a way of blocking it before it enters the body.”
