Liquiritin for COVID-19

Novel Corona virus-2 (Covid-19) is spreading and causing major damage around the globe and constantly increasing daily. There is a prerequisite of expeditious development of safe and efficient drugs for such a contagious disease. In this regard, utilization of a computational approach with an aim to provide potential enzyme inhibitors derived from natural resources will give a providential therapy. The present study investigated one of the promising plants namely Glycyrrhiza glabra L. It has various medicinal properties viz. anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, anti-demulcent, expectorant, etc. In-Silico Analysis of liquiritin against SARS-CoV-2 Mpro was carried out using Autodock 4.2.6 and results were compared with presently prescribed drugs i.e. dexamethasone, remdesivir, hydroxychloroquine, and azithromycin. The binding energy of liquiritin was found to be -6.62 kcal/mol. It shows presence of hydrogen bond, hydrophobic interaction and electrostatic interaction with six active residues THR26, GLY143, CYS145, HIS 164, GLU166, and GLN189. Comparative studies investigated that dexamethasone, remdesivir, hydroxychloroquine, and azithromycin have four (THR26, GLY143, CYS145, GLU166), three (CYS145, GLU166, GLN189), four (GLY143, CYS145, HIS 164, GLN189) and two (GLU166, GLN189) identical active residues, respectively. The present study recommended liquiritin as a potential candidate against SARS-CoV-2 as it is naturally derived and has tremendous traditional usage against various diseases. However, in-vitro and in-vivo studies are required to prove its efficacy.