Artificial enzymes can fight the COVID-causing virus by selectively snipping apart its RNA genome, a new study suggests. Researchers say the technique may overcome key problems with previous technologies and could help create rapid antiviral treatments as threats emerge.

When the COVID pandemic struck, University of Cambridge chemical biologist Alexander Taylor scrambled to repurpose a gene-cutting technology he and his colleagues had been developing: synthetic enzymes called XNAzymes (xeno nucleic acids) formed from artificial RNA. Working single-handedly during lockdown, Taylor generated five XNAzymes targeting sequences in SARS-CoV-2’s genome in a matter of days.

Enzymes are natural catalysts that facilitate chemical transformations—in this case, by chopping other molecules apart. But previous DNA-and RNA-based enzymes have struggled to cut long, highly structured molecules such as virus genomes. Instead they destroy targets by recruiting existing enzymes inside cells—a less precise process that can lead to “off-target” cuts and increased side effects.

A team of undergraduate and graduate chemistry students in Jennifer Hines’ lab at Ohio University recently uncovered a new class of compounds that can target RNA and disrupt its function. This discovery identified a chemical scaffold that could ultimately be used in the development of RNA-targeted medicines to treat bacterial and viral infections, as well as cancer and metabolic diseases.

RNA is chemically like DNA but also controls the extent to which the DNA’s instructions are carried out within a living cell. It is this essential regulatory role in the function of the cell that makes RNA such an attractive target.

“Trying to target RNA is at the forefront of medicinal chemistry research with enormous potential for treating diseases,” said Hines, professor of chemistry and biochemistry in the College of Arts and Sciences. “However, there are relatively few compounds known to directly modulate RNA activity which makes it challenging to design new RNA-targeted therapeutics.”