Is that why the main proteinase enzyme is a good drug target?
Well, I started calling it the Achilles heel of the coronavirus because if you block its activity there’s no replication or maturation, and no new virus particles. So it’s a very attractive target, both for the SARS-coronavirus and also for other coronaviruses. Our group previously proposed the main proteinase as a drug target last year in the EMBO Journal (2), defining the unique and interesting structure of the TGEV coronavirus main proteinase. Is the SARS-coronavirus protein profile very different from TGEV and other Coronaviridae? Most human coronaviruses have 2 copies of the first, papain-like, proteinase enzyme whereas the SARS-coronavirus has only one. However, there are a lot of similarities, and what we have learned about TGEV and human coronavirus has certainly helped in our understanding the SARS-coronavirus. Could you briefly explain how crystallography-based 3D models help in designing drugs against coronavirus. Sure, you take your crystal structure obtained through X-ray
