"Combination of Two Promising Methodologies for Possible Treatment Against COVID-19"

Abstract

Objective: Combine the CRISPR-Cas13 technique with the action of the medicinal plant Hibiscus sabdariffa for the treatment against COVID-19.Method: Gene and protein sequences obtained from GeneBank of the spike protein of the virus that binds the AE2 receptor in the target cell were used. These were analyzed with the MEGA software. The chemical structures obtained from Hibiscus sabdariffa were also studied and compared with the structure of hydroxychloroquine and compounds that stimulate the immune response such as Acetylsalicylic acid. These obtained in PubChem.Results: Amino acid residues that serve to bind the spike protein to the AE2 receptor were identified and modified by changing the codons corresponding to these amino acids by stop codons in the spike protein genome. The chemical structures of Hibiscus sabdariffa were similar to hydroxychloroquine and Acetylsalicylic acid. Conclusion:When the two technologies are combined, the virus could be stopped before entering the cell, due to the agonist effect of the Hibiscus sabdariffa chemical compounds, and in addition, the genome of the spike protein can be modified inside the target cell so that the virus runs out of infectious potential for other cells.