“…These enzymes, which catalyze the hydrolysis of peptide bonds, coordinate the dynamic remodelingand functional rewiringof the complex protein systems that underlie blood clotting, tissue repair, and viral assembly, among other biochemical feats. − The first clinically approved protease inhibitor targeted HIV-1 protease (HIVpro), which cleaves polyproteins into functional subunits of the HIV virion; today, this enzyme is the target of 10 approved drugs . Over the years, proteases have emerged as important targets for other viral diseasesnotably, hepatitis C and coronavirus infectious disease-19 (COVID-19)as well as cardiovascular disorders and cancer . Despite their therapeutic promise, proteases often evolve resistance mutations, which can emerge early in clinical trials, and remain subject to the same slow development timelines that plague other drugs .…”