Identification of a Plausible Inhibitor of SARS-Cov 2 Protease (6LU7) and the Spike Envelope Glycoprotein (6MOJ) from Active Compounds of Nigella sativa: An In-silico Approach

SARS-CoV-2, the recent disease outbreak causing respiratory tract illness, raised as the global health burden that has caused significant morbidity and mortality worldwide. In the ongoing transmission of this pandemic virus, its control is very challenging due to the lack of specific treatment. The compelling situation feels the necessity for the use of all assets to cure this disease. SARS-CoV-2, main protease, and spike envelope glycoprotein are important determinants in the infectious virus process, and targeting these proteins is gaining importance in anti-CoV drug design. In these conceptual circumstances, an attempt has been made to suggest an in silico molecular docking approach to identify new probable leads from the active constituents from Nigella sativa L against protein target main protease(6LU7) and spike envelope glycoprotein(6MOJ). Our results indicate that Nigellicine and Nigellicimine N-Oxide towards main protease and Nigellamine A5 and Nigellamine A1 towards spike glycoprotein has potential antiviral protein binding affinity among others forming good interactions. Thus, these compounds may be considered to be potential inhibitors against SARS-CoV-2 but need to be explored for further evaluations are recommended. © 2022, AMG Transcend Association. All rights reserved.

Chemistry and Biomedical Applications of Cumin and Turmeric: A Review, Challenge and Perspective

Since time immemorial, natural products have found applications for the treatment of many maladies and ailments. This review attempts to portray the chemistry, bio-medical activities and efficacy in the therapy of COVID-19 of one age-old famous spice cumin and an eminent herb turmeric. Both of them have found significant applications in the disciplines of Ayurveda for their physiological and nutraceutical benefits. It is worth mentioning that the versatility of cumin and turmeric in terms of treating a variety of ailments, as well as their antioxidant properties, has always piqued the curiosity of the scientific community. Even in recent times, both of them are being scrutinised for their response to the global pandemic, COVID-19. Thymoquinone, the most abundant constituent of black cumin has shown immense therapeutic potential. On the other hand, curcumin, an important bio-active component of turmeric owns a wide array of pharmacologic effects. The utilisation of curcumin-derived carbon quantum dots and nanoparticle bound curcumin, on the other hand, is a new field in nanomedicine. Having said all these things, a few challenges have been encountered regarding their uses as drug candidates. Several research papers for the past fifteen years have been consulted using online databases like Google Scholar, Scopus and PubMed to compose this article in the viewpoint of the promises and challenges of the active constituents of cumin and turmeric as potential drug candidates.

Nigella sativa L. and COVID-19: A Glance at The Anti-COVID-19 Chemical Constituents, Clinical Trials, Inventions, and Patent Literature.

COVID-19 has had an impact on human quality of life and economics. Scientists have been identifying remedies for its prevention and treatment from all possible sources, including plants. Nigella sativa L. (NS) is an important medicinal plant of Islamic value. This review highlights the anti-COVID-19 potential, clinical trials, inventions, and patent literature related to NS and its major chemical constituents, like thymoquinone. The literature was collected from different databases, including Pubmed, Espacenet, and Patentscope. The literature supports the efficacy of NS, NS oil (NSO), and its chemical constituents against COVID-19. The clinical data imply that NS and NSO can prevent and treat COVID-19 patients with a faster recovery rate. Several inventions comprising NS and NSO have been claimed in patent applications to prevent/treat COVID-19. The patent literature cites NS as an immunomodulator, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, a source of anti-SARS-CoV-2 compounds, and a plant having protective effects on the lungs. The available facts indicate that NS, NSO, and its various compositions have all the attributes to be used as a promising remedy to prevent, manage, and treat COVID-19 among high-risk people as well as for the therapy of COVID-19 patients of all age groups as a monotherapy or a combination therapy. Many compositions of NS in combination with countless medicinal herbs and medicines are still unexplored. Accordingly, the authors foresee a bright scope in developing NS-based anti-COVID-19 composition for clinical use in the future.