Antimicrobial peptides and other peptide-like therapeutics as promising candidates to combat SARS-CoV-2

ABSTRACT

Introduction: There are currently no specific drugs and universal vaccines for Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), hence urgent effective measures are needed to discover and develop therapeutic agents. Applying peptide therapeutics and their related compounds is a promising strategy to achieve this goal. This review is written based on the literature search using several databases, previous studies, scientific reports, our current knowledge about the antimicrobial peptides (AMPs), and our personal analyses on the potential of the antiviral peptides for the treatment of COVID-19.

Areas covered: In this review, we begin with a brief description of SARS-CoV2 followed by a comprehensive description of antiviral peptides (AVPs) including natural and synthetic AMPs or AVPs and peptidomimetics. Subsequently, the structural features, mechanisms of action, limitations, and therapeutic applications of these peptides are explained.

Expert opinion: Regarding the lack and the limitations of drugs against COVID-19, AMPs, AVPs, and other peptide-like compounds such as peptidomimetics have captured the attention of researchers due to their potential antiviral activities. Some of these compounds comprise unique properties and have demonstrated the potential to fight SARS-CoV2, particularly melittin, lactoferrin, enfuvirtide, and rupintrivir that have the potential to enter animal and clinical trials for the treatment of COVID-19.

KEYWORDS:

• COVID-19
• SARS-CoV-2
• antimicrobial peptides
• antiviral Peptides
• peptidomimetics

Article highlights

• Antiviral peptides and other peptide-like therapeutics are promising candidates to combat SARS-CoV-2.

• Many of the peptides or peptidomimetics have the potential to enter animal and clinical trials for the treatment of Covid-19.

• The most important limitations of AVPs are cytotoxicity, low serum stability, allergic and inflammatory responses, low and relative selectivity, and high synthesis costs.

• The AVPs can be designed before synthesis using bioinformatics tools and protein engineering strategies to bypass most of their limitations.

• Peptidomimetics are more stable and have more powerful drug-like properties than natural peptides.

• We recommend a clinical trial on Enfuvirtide as a fusion inhibitor for the treatment of COVID-19.

Acknowledgments

We thank the staff on the Semnan University of Medical Sciences, Drug Design and Bioinformatics Unit of Biotechnology Research Center of Pasteur Institute of Iran, and Infectious Diseases Research Center of Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences.

Declaration of interest

The authors have no relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript. This includes employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or options, expert testimony, grants or patents received or pending, or royalties.

Reviewer disclosures

Peer reviewers on this manuscript have no relevant financial or other relationships to disclose.

Correction Statement

This article has been republished with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

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Funding

This paper was not funded.