ABSTRACT
The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has caused the death of 5.5 million people and the infection of more than 323 million people as of January 2022. The remarkable increase in pathogenicity and virulence might have occurred as a result of viral RNA mutations. To date, few antiviral drugs have been authorized for emergency use, but not yet approved, to treat mild to moderate COVID-19, with serious drawbacks and side effects. Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) play an important role in the host's innate and adaptive immune system against a wide range of microbial infections. Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats (CRISPR) is thought to be used to increase the recombinant biosynthesis of AMPs. There have been studies that reported the production of AMPs using CRISPR. Therefore, CRISPR is expected to play an important role in the production of AMPs as next-generation, safe, affordable, and efficient antiviral drugs in general and for the treatment of COVID-19 in particular, in addition to AMPs being efficient immunomodulators.
ABSTRACT
Peptides are fragments of proteins that carry out biological functions. They act as signaling entities via all domains of life and interfere with protein-protein interactions, which are indispensable in bio-processes. Short peptides include fundamental molecular information for a prelude to the symphony of life. They have aroused considerable interest due to their unique features and great promise in innovative bio-therapies. This work focusing on the current state-of-the-art short peptide-based therapeutical developments is the first global review written by researchers from all continents, as a celebration of 100 years of peptide therapeutics since the commencement of insulin therapy in the 1920s. Peptide "drugs" initially played only the role of hormone analogs to balance disorders. Nowadays, they achieve numerous biomedical tasks, can cross membranes, or reach intracellular targets. The role of peptides in bio-processes can hardly be mimicked by other chemical substances. The article is divided into independent sections, which are related to either the progress in short peptide-based theranostics or the problems posing challenge to bio-medicine. In particular, the SWOT analysis of short peptides, their relevance in therapies of diverse diseases, improvements in (bio)synthesis platforms, advanced nano-supramolecular technologies, aptamers, altered peptide ligands and in silico methodologies to overcome peptide limitations, modern smart bio-functional materials, vaccines, and drug/gene-targeted delivery systems are discussed.
Subject(s)
Anti-Infective Agents/pharmacology , Antiviral Agents/pharmacology , Peptides/chemistry , Peptides/pharmacology , Peptides/therapeutic use , Amino Acids/chemistry , Anti-Infective Agents/chemistry , Antiviral Agents/chemistry , Computer Simulation , Cosmeceuticals/chemistry , Cosmeceuticals/therapeutic use , Dietary Supplements , Gene Transfer Techniques , Humans , Lactoferrin/chemistry , Lipid Bilayers , Nanostructures/administration & dosage , Nanostructures/chemistry , Peptides/administration & dosage , Stem Cells , Vaccines, Subunit/chemistry , Vaccines, Subunit/pharmacology , COVID-19 Drug TreatmentABSTRACT
COVID-19 is currently considered as a life-threatening pandemic viral infection. Finding an antiviral drug or a vaccine is the only route for humans' survival against it. To date, no specific antiviral treatment has been confirmed. Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) have been widely regarded as a promising solution to combat harmful microorganisms. They are biologically active molecules produced by different organisms as an essential component of their innate immune response against invading pathogens. Lactoferrin (LF), one of the AMPs, is an iron-binding glycoprotein that is present in several mucosal secretions. The antiviral activity of LF exists against a wide range of human and animal viruses (DNA and RNA). LF was proven to increase the host immunity against viral infection. Since LF is one of the constituents of breast milk and significantly located at the mucosal layers of the human body, it is considered the first line of defense against microbial infection. LF was reported to have antiviral activity against SARS-CoV infection. The significant antiviral activity of LF makes it a potential option as an immunity enhancer, a drug or a drug conjugate with conventional antivirals. The affordability, environmental safety, and efficiency of LFs will make them superior to all other control strategies.