COVID-19: Researchers identify four antiviral drug candidatesStaff writer, with CNANational Yang Ming Chiao Tung University researchers have identified four antiviral drug candidates that can inhibit SARS-CoV-2, which causes COVID-19, the team leader said on Tuesday. One of the drug candidates — JMY206 — is more than 10 times stronger than remdesivir, the first antiviral drug fully certified for the treatment of COVID-19, said Yang Jinn-moon (楊進木), dean of the university’s College of Biological Science and Technology. It then gathered SARS-related data and screened US Food and Drug Administration-approved drugs and natural products for possible COVID-19 treatment, he said. The most potent of the drugs, JMY206, can inhibit SARS-CoV-2 from entering cells, the team said. The therapeutic benefits of JMY206 have also been proven in animal experiments and it can be a potential oral drug against COVID-19, Yang said.

Source: Taipei Times February 24, 2021 15:56 UTC