The Need for Speed and Efficiency: A Brief Review of Small Molecule Antivirals for COVID-19

March 2022 in “ Frontiers in drug discovery ”

Ana C. Puhl, Thomas R. Lane, Fabio Urbina, Sean Ekins

Studysummary This review summarizes 25 small molecule drugs with in vitro and in vivo data for COVID-19 treatment, highlighting their structural diversity and potential to guide future antiviral discovery. Our plain-language summary of this paper — not a Tressless recommendation.

The document reviews the development and efficacy of small molecule antivirals for COVID-19, including remdesivir, molnupiravir, and Paxlovid, all of which have received FDA emergency use authorization. However, their effectiveness varies and comprehensive clinical trial data is not yet available. Other drugs like PF-00835231, Favipiravir, Dexamethasone, Fluvoxamine, Pyronaridine, and Quaternary Ammonium Compounds have shown promising results against SARS-CoV-2 in clinical trials. The document also discusses the potential of these drugs to address specific COVID-19 symptoms and their potential use in treating long COVID. It emphasizes the need for global collaborations to accelerate the drug discovery pipeline and to counter future pandemics. The paper also highlights the need for continual drug discovery and development due to the dynamic nature of COVID-19 and the emergence of new variants. The document concludes by stressing the importance of understanding the physicochemical properties and potential mechanisms of identified molecules to improve future drug discovery efforts.

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