Indole-Based Compounds as Potential Drug Candidates for SARS-CoV-2

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has posed a significant threat to society in recent times, endangering human health, life, and economic well-being. The disease quickly spreads due to the highly infectious SARS-CoV-2 virus, which has undergone numerous mutations. Despite intense research efforts by the scientific community since its emergence in 2019, no effective therapeutics have been discovered yet. While some repurposed drugs have been used to control the global outbreak and save lives, none have proven universally effective, particularly for severely infected patients. Although the spread of the disease is generally under control, anti-SARS-CoV-2 agents are still needed to combat current and future infections. This study reviews some of the most promising repurposed drugs containing indolyl heterocycle, which is an essential scaffold of many alkaloids with diverse bio-properties in various biological fields. The study also discusses natural and synthetic indole-containing compounds with anti-SARS-CoV-2 properties and computer-aided drug design (in silico studies) for optimizing anti-SARS-CoV-2 hits/leads.

Development of Fluorescence-Based Assays for Key Viral Proteins in the SARS-CoV-2 Infection Process and Lifecycle

“…However, there are some problems, such as the new use of old drugs, the toxic and side effects of drugs, the poor pharmacokinetic properties and the poor therapeutic effect on mutant viruses [ 18 ]. So far, no drugs have been shown to be generally effective against different severities of infection and mutant virus strains, especially for patients with low immunity and severe infection of SARS-CoV-2 [ 19 ]. Therefore, it is urgent to find new therapeutic targets to develop anti-SARS-CoV-2 drugs, which are not difficult to find from the currently approved anti-SARS-CoV-2 drugs in the world ( Table 1 ).…”

Antineoplastic indole-containing compounds with potential VEGFR inhibitory properties

“…Recently, clinical trials supported its positive impact on the prevention or treatment COVID-19 infection upon being administered alone or in combination with other therapeutics. [21][22][23][24] Serotonin 2 is a neurotransmitter that controls many human functions such as mood, appetite, sleep and social behavior. 25 Many indole-containing drugs have been approved and in clinical use for a long time, among which indomethacin 3 is a famous non-steroidal anti-inammatory drug (approved by the FDA "Food and Drug Administration" since 1965) 26 with inhibitory properties against cyclooxygenase (COX), an enzyme controlling the formation of prostaglandin from arachidonic acid.…”

“…Recently, clinical trials supported its positive impact on the prevention or treatment COVID-19 infection upon being administered alone or in combination with other therapeutics. 21–24 Serotonin 2 is a neurotransmitter that controls many human functions such as mood, appetite, sleep and social behavior. 25…”