![\"\"](\"http:\/\/sites.unica.it\/pe2026\/files\/2025\/09\/cropped-00_Profile_Tondo-Social__Spilla_PE26_1200px.png\")
<\/figure>PC31 – Erica Sanna<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n University of Cagliari, Italy<\/p>\n\n\n\n LinkedIn<\/a><\/strong> –<\/strong> ORCID<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n erica.sanna@unica.it<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n PC31 – Erica Sanna University of Cagliari, Italy LinkedIn – ORCID erica.sanna@unica.it The Coronavirus Helicase as a Drug Target: New Chemical Approaches Against a Conserved Viral Engine Sanna Erica1, Corona Angela1, Lupia Antonio1, Onali Alessia1, Atzenia […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10371,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2157","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-senza-categoria"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.unica.it\/pe2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2157","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.unica.it\/pe2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.unica.it\/pe2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.unica.it\/pe2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10371"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.unica.it\/pe2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2157"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/sites.unica.it\/pe2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2157\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2562,"href":"https:\/\/sites.unica.it\/pe2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2157\/revisions\/2562"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.unica.it\/pe2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2157"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.unica.it\/pe2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2157"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.unica.it\/pe2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2157"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}The Coronavirus Helicase as a Drug Target: New Chemical Approaches Against a Conserved Viral Engine<\/em><\/strong><\/td><\/tr> Sanna Erica1<\/sup><\/em>, Corona Angela1<\/sup><\/em>, Lupia Antonio1<\/sup><\/em>, Onali Alessia1<\/sup><\/em>, Atzenia Giulia1<\/sup><\/em>, Demuru Laura1<\/sup><\/em>, Meleddu Rita1<\/sup><\/em>, Cottiglia Filippo1<\/sup><\/em>, Distinto Simona1<\/sup><\/em>, Tramontano Enzo1<\/sup><\/em>, Maccioni Elias1<\/sup><\/em>
1<\/sup><\/em> Department of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Cagliari, Cittadella Universitaria di Monserrato, S.P. 8 km 0.700, 09042, Cagliari, Italy<\/td><\/tr>Abstract<\/strong>
Helicase of human coronaviruses (hCoVs) is responsible for the RNA unwinding in a 5\u2019 to 3\u2019 direction, a process driven by the ATP hydrolysis. \u00a0Given its crucial role in viral replication and its highly conserved sequence among hCoVs, this enzyme represents a promising and attractive target for the development of new antiviral drugs.[1]
In this study, with the goal to identify potential Pan-hCoVs helicase inhibitors, we have rationally designed and synthesized a library of compounds. These compounds were characterized using structural (single-crystal X-ray diffraction) and spectroscopic (NMR, MS) techniques and subsequently, evaluated for their biological activity. Our results revealed that all compounds were able to inhibit both SARS-CoV-2 helicase-associated enzyme activities, namely NTPase and unwinding activity, showing IC50 values in the low micromolar range. Among them, several compounds also demonstrated potent antiviral effects, significantly inhibiting SARS-CoV-2 replication at low EC50 values, without causing notable cytotoxicity (CC50).
Furthermore, some of the most promising candidates demonstrated antiviral activity against other human coronaviruses such as MERS-CoV and hCoV-229E, highlighting their potential as pan-hCoV inhibitors.
These findings underscore the potential of targeting hCoV helicase as a strategy for developing effective treatments against SARS-CoV-2 and other hCoVs, opening the door to the development of novel therapeutic agents that could address both current and future emerging coronavirus-related diseases.<\/td><\/tr>References \u00a0<\/strong>
[1] Spratt, A.N., et al.,\u00a0Coronavirus helicases: attractive and unique targets of antiviral drug-development and therapeutic patents.<\/em>\u00a0Expert Opin Ther Pat, 2021.\u00a031<\/strong>(4): p. 339-350.<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/div><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"