Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 Emergence and Its Treatment with Alternative Medicines: A Review

Abstract

Known as the causal factor of the recent global COVID-19 pandemic, any SARS-CoV-2 is not the only coronavirus that has constituted a menace to society and taken thousands of human lives. Two previous pandemics were also led by coronaviruses; such as the MERS-CoV in 2012 and another SARS-CoV in 2002. Only five months into existence, SARS-CoV-2 transmitted infection to approximately 75 million people and it has led to more than 1.5 million of deaths all over the world. Unfortunately, there has not been any specific treatment yet for COVID-19 yet and its control is purely empirical. The examinations of the parity between SARS-CoV-2 and SARS-CoV, in terms of their genomics, origin, epidemiology, and pathogenesis, suggested that we may use the previous data of MERS-CoV or SARS-CoV as a guideline for uncovering the effective approach to strive against SARS-CoV-2. Various studies have reported the positive effects of numerous phytochemical compounds against SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV. Interestingly, this idea has been emplyed for SARS-CoV-2, and in silico screening of phytochemical compounds has been performed for identifying the potential candidates for COVID-19 treatment. Curcumin is an example of a natural compound which was demonstrated as potent candidate contrary to SARS-CoV-2 protease derived from the in silico studies. Herein, the occurrence of SARS-CoV-2 and the aplication of alternative medicines for treating coronavirus diseases are briefly reviewed.

Curcumin from Curcuma longa L. as Dual Inhibitors Against Indonesian SARS-CoV-2 Isolates: A Molecular Docking Study

“…For a very long time, various plant parts, extracts, and sophisticated products had been utilized to treat illness. In summary, more than 50,000 higher plant species are thought to be utilized for therapeutic reasons worldwide [20][21][22][23][24] .…”

Screening of Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitor from Moringa oleifera Bioactive Compound through In Silico Study Againts HIV-1

“…Hydrogen bond interactions have an important role in triggering a specific response to the target protein and are used as an indicator of the effectiveness of a drug's performance, the more types of hydrogen bonding interactions on the target protein, the stronger the effect of the drug 39,40,41,42,43 . Identification of molecular interactions and binding positions on the docked protein-ligand complex (Figure 2) showed that the bonding of kaempferitrin and β-sitosterol compounds in HIV-1 RT resulted in non-covalent bond interactions consisting of Van der Waals, pi, hydrogen, and unfavorable interactions not detected (Table 3).…”

Computational Screening of Toxicity, Drug-like Molecule, and Bioactivity from Green Tea Phytochemical as Antiviral Candidate

“…The parameters used in this study in determining druglike molecules by referring to the Lipinski Rule of Five, this rule refers to the hydrogen bond donor (HBD), high lipophilicity (LogP), molecular weight (MM), hydrogen bond acceptor (HBA), & molar refractivity (MR), query compounds with drug-like molecule properties must follow at least two Lipinski rules 29,30 . Lipinski's rule consists of molar refractivity should be between 40-130, molecular mass less than 500 Dalton, less than 5 hydrogen bond donors & 10 for hydrogen bond acceptors 31,32 . Drug candidate compounds that follow the Lipinski Rule of Five are predicted to be able to pass through selectively permeable membranes, affect charge movement, and trigger passive transport 33,34 .…”