Abstract
As a complement to vaccines, small-molecule therapeutic agents are needed to treat or prevent infections by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) and its variants, which cause COVID-19. Affinity selection-mass spectrometry was used for the discovery of botanical ligands to the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. Cannabinoid acids from hemp ( Cannabis sativa ) were found to be allosteric as well as orthosteric ligands with micromolar affinity for the spike protein. In follow-up virus neutralization assays, cannabigerolic acid and cannabidiolic acid prevented infection of human epithelial cells by a pseudovirus expressing the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein and prevented entry of live SARS-CoV-2 into cells. Importantly, cannabigerolic acid and cannabidiolic acid were equally effective against the SARS-CoV-2 alpha variant B.1.1.7 and the beta variant B.1.351. Orally bioavailable and with a long history of safe human use, these cannabinoids, isolated or in hemp extracts, have the potential to prevent as well as treat infection by SARS-CoV-2.
【초록키워드】 COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, mass spectrometry, Vaccines, B.1.351, variant, Infection, complement, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2, severe acute respiratory syndrome Coronavirus, variants, cannabis, Spike protein, cells, pseudovirus, B.1.1.7, SARS-CoV-2 spike protein, Alpha, therapeutic agent, epithelial cells, Follow-up, Alpha variant, Beta variant, cannabinoids, affinity, Coronavirus-2, Ligand, Safe, acute respiratory syndrome, cannabinoid, acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus, acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2, live SARS-CoV-2, human epithelial cells, treat, virus neutralization assays, Prevent, effective, hemp, was used, the spike protein, prevented, expressing, human epithelial cell, the SARS-CoV-2, 【제목키워드】 SARS-CoV-2, cannabinoid, block,