Molecular docking analysis of selected natural products from plants for inhibition of SARS-CoV-2 main protease

ABSTRACT

In this article, we report results of a molecular docking analysis of commonly occurring natural product compounds against COVID-19 6LU7 and 6Y2E proteases. Our results show that several of these compounds have binding affinity against both the COVID-19 proteases, and compare well with a known anti-HIV drug, Saquinavir. Many of the compounds form an integral component of many cuisines, both Indian as well as others. We propose that some of these compounds could be easily and quickly positioned to hold fort against the COVID-19 virus, until of course newer therapies are discovered and detailed studies are taken to empirically validate some of the compounds for their ability to inhibit the virus.