Inhibiting Fusion with Cellular Membrane System: Therapeutic Options to Prevent Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 Infection.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV), an enveloped virus with a positive-sense single-stranded RNA genome facilitates the host cell entry through intricate interactions with proteins and lipids of the cell membrane. The detailed molecular mechanism involves binding to the host cell receptor and fusion at the plasma membrane or after being trafficked to late endosomes under favorable environmental conditions. A crucial event in the process is the proteolytic cleavage of the viral spike protein by the host's endogenous proteases that releases the fusion peptide enabling fusion with the host cellular membrane system. The present review details the mechanism of viral fusion with the host and highlights the therapeutic options that prevent SARS-CoV-2 entry in humans.