Using the serpins with cross-class cysteine protease activity to target SARS-CoV-2 Mpro
Serpins cysteine protease inhibition activity can be used to recognize Mpro that is a cysteine protease. However this indirect inhibition of Mpro can be achieved if we progressively replace the serpin RCL residues with the Mpro protein target site. It is expected that this chimeric serpin will form Mpro–chimeric serpin complex thereby reducing the active concentration of Mpro and the rate of cleavage of SARS CoV-2 polypeptide. Additionally it is hypothesized that Mpro may be directly binding and inactivating serpins involved in blood coagulation cascade, which may vary the levels of serpin to induce hypercoagulation, as observed in many Covid-19 patients.