The international scientific community is constantly conducting research to develop increasingly effective methods of combating pathogens. In an article published in the latest issue of Nature, scientists presented the discovery of inhibitors that could find application in future pandemics or epidemics caused by coronaviruses. The study involved researchers from the Malopolska Centre of Biotechnology at Jagiellonian University: Prof. Krzysztof Pyrć, Dr. Katarzyna Owczarek and Dr. Aneta Zegar. 

The results of the study were published in the article “An orally efficacious coronavirus assembly inhibitor that targets the viral M protein”, which appeared in the latest issue of the journal Nature. 

The paper is the result of close collaboration between scientists involved in the CARE project, whose coordinator in Poland is Prof. Krzysztof Pyrć. The project is funded by the European Union and EFPIA – the European Pharmaceutical Industry Association. As part of the preliminary research, a team of chemists from the Center for Drug Design and Discovery (CD3) and scientists from KU Leuven, tested 350,000 molecules for their ability to inhibit the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, using a robotic platform. One of the tested substances proved particularly interesting, as it effectively blocked the multiplication of the virus. 

An international team of scientists participated in research on the mechanism of action of the discovered substance and analyzed the possibility of its future use as a drug during pandemics. 

Source: www.uj.edu.pl