A new lead for nonpeptidic active-site-directed inhibitors of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus main protease discovered by a combination of screening and docking methods

The coronavirus main protease, M-pro, is considered to be a major target for drugs suitable for combating coronavirus infections including severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). An HPLC-based screening of electrophilic compounds that was performed to identify potential M-pro inhibitors revealed etacrynic acid tert-butylamide (6a) as an effective nonpeptidic inhibitor. Docking studies suggested a binding mode in which the phenyl ring acts as a spacer bridging the inhibitor's activated double bond and its hydrophobic tert-butyl moiety. The latter is supposed to fit into the S4 pocket of the target protease. Furthermore, these studies revealed etacrynic acid amide (6b) as a promising lead for nonpeptidic active-site-directed M-pro inhibitors. In a fluorimetric enzyme assay using a novel fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) pair labeled substrate, compound 6b showed a K-i value of 35.3 mu M. Since the novel lead compound does not target the S1', S1, and S2 subsites of the enzyme's substrate-binding pockets, there is room for improvement that underlines the lead character of compound 6b.