Abstract
Even in the face of global vaccination campaigns, there is still an urgent need for effective antivirals against SARS-CoV-2 and its rapidly spreading variants. Several natural compounds show potential as antiviral substances and have the advantages of broad availabilities and large therapeutic windows. Here, we report that lectin from Triticum vulgaris (Wheat Germ Agglutinin) displays antiviral activity against SARS-CoV-2 and its major Variants of Concern (VoC), Alpha and Beta. In Vero B4 cells, WGA potently inhibits SARS-CoV-2 infection with an IC50 of <10 ng/mL. WGA is effective upon preincubation with the virus or when added during infection. Pull-down assays demonstrate direct binding of WGA to SARS-CoV-2, further strengthening the hypothesis that inhibition of viral entry by neutralizing free virions might be the mode of action behind its antiviral effect. Furthermore, WGA exhibits antiviral activity against human coronavirus OC43, but not against other non-coronaviruses causing respiratory tract infections. Finally, WGA inhibits infection of the lung cell line Calu-3 with wild type and VoC viruses with comparable IC50 values. Altogether, our data indicate that topical administration of WGA might be effective for prophylaxis or treatment of SARS-CoV-2 infections.
Highlights
Recent WHO statistics (10 September 2021) report more than 223 million confirmed cases of COVID-19, including up to 4.6 million deaths [1], numbers that are expected to be still on the rise
In order to investigate whether Wheat Germ Agglutinin (WGA) exhibits antiviral activity against SARS-CoV-2, Vero B4 cells (African green monkey kidney cells) were infected with the patient isolate
Cell culture supernatants were harvested after 3 days and virus production was analyzed via quantitative RT-PCR and Western blot
Summary
Recent WHO statistics (10 September 2021) report more than 223 million confirmed cases of COVID-19, including up to 4.6 million deaths [1], numbers that are expected to be still on the rise. While vaccination campaigns are ongoing, the emergence and spread of SARS-CoV-2 variants is becoming a major threat to public health. These “Variants of Concern” (VOC) are the result of viral evolution and variability and have the potential to evade vaccine- or infection-induced antiviral immune response [2,3]. In the case of the VOC Delta, recent reports describe headache, sore throat, runny nose, and fever as main symptoms, resembling a common cold and possibly leading to misinterpretations and overlooking of COVID-19 infection [7]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
