Publisher's Synopsis
A novel coronavirus (CoV), SARS-CoV-2 surfaced in late 2019 in Wuhan, China. SARS-CoV-2, unlike previously identified coronaviruses responsible for severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) outbreak in 2002 and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) in 2012, has rapidly spread across the globe claiming thousands of lives. The new disease caused by SARS-CoV-2 is named coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) by World Health Organization (WHO). As the SARS-CoV-2 is making its way around the world, researchers and doctors are in search of drugs to treat and stop the spread of the disease. Several drugs such as hydroxychloroquine / azithromycin, chloroquine, remdesivir, Ritonavir / lopinavir and favipiravir are currently undergoing clinical trials to test their ability to treat COVID-19 without adverse effects to the infected patients. However, there are many other small compounds being reported from across globe with potential to treat COVID-19 infected patients worth considering for further studies. In this scenario, this review aims to summarize the past, present and future of compounds that can be used to treat corona virus, highlighting compounds presently in clinical trials and all the way to final stages of bringing a drug to market.
