A Review on Novel Drug Targets and Future Directions for COVID-19 Treatment

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 causes coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) that spreads quickly in the world. Considering the impact of this pandemic, researchers have been racing to understand the peculiar nature of the virus and the pathogenesis of the disease to uncover possible drug targets, effective therapeutic agents, and vaccines. Accordingly, numerous drug targets are identified by scientists. Among them, structural glycoproteins, virulence factors, host-specific receptors and enzymes, non-structure proteins, the Janus kinase/signal transducers and activators of transcription (JAK/STAT) signaling pathway, and pro-inflammatory cytokines are discussed herein. This review summarizes the promising drug targets for COVID-19, and highlights antiviral strategies which depend on molecular interactions between viral small molecules and host biologic machinery for repurposing the available clinical drugs. In addition, it gives a strong rational basis for the ongoing discovery of new drugs and vaccines.