mBio . Antiviral Drug Discovery To Address the COVID-19 Pandemic

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mBio


. 2020 Sep 25;11(5):e02134-20.
doi: 10.1128/mBio.02134-20.
Antiviral Drug Discovery To Address the COVID-19 Pandemic


Douglas D Richman ¹



Affiliations

• PMID: 32978312
• DOI: 10.1128/mBio.02134-20

Abstract

The magnitude of the morbidity and mortality inflicted upon the global population in less than 1 year has driven the inescapable conclusion that the discovery and development of effective antiviral drugs for COVID-19 are urgent and should be prioritized. The antiviral drug discovery programs that emerged for HIV and hepatitis C virus have enabled technology and expertise to accelerate this process for SARS-CoV-2. The description of candidate lead inhibitors for the viral main protease (M^pro) exemplifies this accelerated approach and reminds us of the needs and opportunities for addressing this pandemic.

Keywords: COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; antiviral agents; coronavirus; drug resistance; hepatitis C virus; human immunodeficiency virus; protease inhibitors.