Exploring the active compounds of traditional Mongolian medicine in intervention of novel coronavirus (COVID 19) based on molecular docking method
Abstract Objective This article intends to use molecular docking technology to find potential inhibitors that can respond to COVID 19 from active compounds in Mongolian medicine. Methods Mongolian medicine with anti inflammatory and antiviral effects is selected from Mongolian medicine prescription preparations. TCMSP, ETCM database and document mining methods were used to collect active compounds. Swiss TargetPrediction and SuperPred server were used to find targets of compounds with smiles number. Drugbank and Genecard database were used to collect antiviral drug targets. Then the above targets were compared and analyzed to screen out antiviral targets of Mongolia medicine. Metascape database platform was used to enrich and analyze the GO (Gene ontology) annotation and KEGG pathway of the targets. In view of the high homology of gene sequences between SARS CoV 2 S protein RBD domain and SARS virus, as well as their similarities in pathogenesis and clinical manifestations, we established SARS CoV 2 S protein model using Swiss Model. The ZDOCK protein docking software was applied to dock the S protein with the human angiotensin ACE2 protein to find out the key amino acids of the binding site. Taking ACE2 as the receptor, the molecular docking between the active ingredients and the target protein was studied by AutoDock molecular docking software. The interaction between ligand and receptor is applied to provide a choice for screening anti COVID 19 drugs. Results A total of 253 active components were predicted. Metascape analysis showed that key candidate targets were significantly enriched in multiple pathways related to different toxins. These key candidate targets were mainly derived from phillyrin and chlorogenic acid. Through the protein docking between S protein and ACE2, it is found that Glu329/Gln325 and Gln42/Asp38 in ACE2 play an important role in the binding process of the two. The results of molecular docking virtual calculation showed that phillyrin and chlorogenic acid could stably combine with Gln325 and Gln42/Asp38 in ACE2, respectively, which hindered the combination between S protein and ACE2. Conclusion Phillyrin and chlorogenic acid can effectively prevent the combination of SARS CoV 2 S protein and ACE2 at the molecular level. Phillyrin and chlorogenic acid can be used as potential inhibitors of COVID 19 for further research and development.
Journal of Functional Foods