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news.Researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago and two other institutions have unraveled the structure of an important new drug target from the virus that causes severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS.
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“By unlocking the three-dimensional structure of this enzyme – known as papain-like-protease (PLpro) – we now have a molecular road map to design new drugs that could potentially treat SARS-infected patients, or perhaps patients suffering from other SARS-related illnesses such as the common cold, bronchitis or pneumonia,” said Andrew Mesecar, associate professor of pharmaceutical biotechnology in the UIC College of Pharmacy.
“We are attempting to use the same approach that has been accomplished in designing effective drugs against HIV protease, which has led to the development of new drugs to fight the AIDS virus.”
Mr Mesecar said that the knowledge gained from this new atomic structure – the first-ever reported on this class of proteases – has the potential to go beyond the treatment of patients infected with the coronavirus that causes SARS.
Coronaviruses, which produce upper respiratory tract infections, were discovered in the late 1960s. The viruses are responsible for 10-30% of all common colds. Recently, two new coronaviruses – NL63 and HKU1- were found to cause many cases of severe pneumonia in children and the elderly throughout the world.
The papain-like-protease enzyme is essential for viral replication and infection of all of the coronaviruses involved in upper respiratory infections. Eliminating the enzyme should stop the infection, according to Mr Mesecar.