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IMAGE: Molecular modelling of interactions of heparin saccharides (coloured stick and balls) with the receptor binding domain of the Spike protein of SARS-CoV2 virus (yellow/green ribbon), which interfere with its. view more
Credit: Mycroft-West et al.
An international team of researchers led by the Universities of Liverpool and Keele, working with Public Health England, has found that the common anticoagulant drug heparin inhibits the SARS-Cov2 virus spike protein, by reducing the virus ability to attach to human cells and infect them.
The research, published in the journals
British Journal of Pharmacology, and
Thrombosis and Haemostasis, found that heparin interacts with the spike protein on the surface of coronavirus (SARS-CoV2), destabilising its structure and preventing it from docking with the ACE2 receptor on human cells.