Special Issues

Drug repurposing nature-based products against COVID-19

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Special Issue Information

Overall, 60% of new infectious diseases come from zoonosis, 72% being of wildlife origin. In recent years, new infectious pathogens have emerged, including the Zika virus, Ebola virus, pandemic influenza, West Nile virus, severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), and SARS-CoV-2. The lack of immediate effective prevention or treatment has resulted in some of the most dramatic and lethal disease pandemics in recent human history, wreaking havoc on public healthcare systems and slowing socioeconomic growth. Vaccination is still a very effective way of stimulating protective immune responses to infections. The World Health Organization (WHO) recently published a list of the top emerging diseases that are likely to cause major epidemics. Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF), Ebola virus disease (EVD) and Marburg, Lassa fever, Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) and severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) coronavirus diseases, chikungunya, Zika, Nipah, and Rift Valley fever were among the first diseases identified as requiring urgent research and development (R&D). With about 35% of currently used medicines originated directly or indirectly from natural products including: plants (25%), microorganisms (13%) and animals (about 3%). For over 70% of the world population that has no access to overpriced Western medicine, medicinal plants and/or herbs are essential. That is why the WHO highly recommends traditional medicine, as endorsed in its 2008 Beijing statement. It is therefore crucial for developing countries to conduct more research and development into natural products as a source of pharmaceutical intervention against emerging infectious diseases.

Main challenges

The Director-General of the WHO declared Coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19), a global public health emergency of international concern, on 30 January 2020, caused by severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS-CoV-2). As of July 19, 2021, 11:36 GMT, the current number of reported cases stand at 191,322,425, 4,108,240 deaths and 174,256,543 recoveries. Although the mortality rate stands at 2.15% globally, the number of individuals who recovered from COVID-19 still have progressing symptoms, termed “long covid” that affect their quality of health even after recovery. The economic impact of the pandemic has been severe and will take years to restore. The slow vaccine rollout in third world countries, vaccine hesitancy in the first world threaten to the eradication of the COVID-19. The multiple mutations of COVID-19 observed ranging from B.1.1.7 (Alpha), B.1.351 (Beta), P.1 (Gamma) and B.1.617.2 (Delta) have spread across the world, as they spread more easily and quickly than other variants. Emerging evidence shows that some immune responses driven by current vaccines could be less effective against some of the new strains occurring.

The Special Issue aims to publish all the latest and outstanding developments in the application of Drug repurposing nature-based products against COVID-19

Guest Editor

Mpho Ngoepe, PhD
Chemistry (PhD), Pharmaceutics (MSc(Med)), Genetics (BSc(Hons)), BSc
University of South Africa (UNISA), Florida Campus, Cnr of Christiaan de Wet Street & Pioneer Avenue, Florida USA
Research interest: Natural products for fighting against emerging infectious diseases, Synthesis of novel compounds for anti-viral and anti-cancer application, natural product derivatives, Design of nanomaterials from natural products with medicinal properties, In silico studies for screening of natural products for medicinal use.
Email: mphophehello@gmail.com

Co-guest Editor:

Ogunyemi Olajide Oderinlo, Ph.D
Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science,
Federal University Otuoke, Bayelsa.
Research Interest: Synthetic Organic and Medicinal Chemistry, Natural Product and Drug Discovery.
Email: oderinlooo@fuotuoke.edu.ng

Manuscript Submission

We invite original research articles, review articles and short communications that have not been published or under review to be submitted to this special issue. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. Authors or their submitting author are encouraged to follow the manuscript submission guidelines of AROC journals https://arocjournal.com/submission-guidelines/ and submit their papers through our online submission and select special issue section for this issue https://arocjournal.com/online-submission/. All papers submitted will go through peer review process with at least three reviewers, the guest editors will make an initial decision and the Editor-in-chief will make final decision, and if accepted, the paper will be published online immediately. AROC article processing charge for publication of this special issue is $30. Authors are encouraged to format their papers and use good English prior to submission, or they may contact the editor for AROC English editing service.

Submission Deadline

December 15, 2021

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