How COVID-19 virus outsmarts antiviral drugs and what’s next for beating the virus

What is it about?

Remdesivir is a frontline drug used to treat COVID-19 during the pandemic. It blocks the virus propagation by stop the ability of the virus to copy its genetic material. But did you know the COVID-19 virus, SARS-CoV-2, can “edit out” remdesivir and other powerful antiviral medicines? This process makes antiviral treatments less effective. Our latest research uncovers the clever way SARS-CoV-2 evades these antiviral treatments: after remdesivir tries to block the virus’s ability to make new copies, the virus uses a built-in proofreading system (called ExoN) to snip the drug out of its genetic code. Using an advanced imaging technique called cryo-electron microscopy, our research visualizes the fine details of how ExoN recognizes remdesivir and remove the drug from the viral RNA.

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Photo by National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases on Unsplash

Photo by National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases on Unsplash

Why is it important?

The trick to escape antiviral treatments is not just found in SARS-CoV-2, it is shared by all coronaviruses. Understanding exactly how coronaviruses achieve this trick gives scientists a roadmap for creating better drugs and combination therapies that can overcome this drug resistance and more effectively fight viral infection.