Masitinib and Its Role in Inhibiting SARS-CoV-2 Infection

A drug used successfully in veterinary medicine to treat mast cell tumors in dogs may be effective against COVID-19 and some other viral diseases in humans, according to laboratory experiments and preclinical studies published in Science 2021 [1]. Coronaviruses also require such enzymes. After entering the cells, their genome is first converted into 2 polyproteins, which must be broken down into smaller units. This task is performed by 2 proteases. This is once the main protease 3CL (also called Mpro or nsp5). The 2nd enzyme is the "papain-like" protease, abbreviated PLpro. Drugs that block one of these enzymes could prevent the viruses from replicating in the cells and thus stop the progression of the infection.