Evidence map›Paper›PMID 33564093›Full record

ArticleCommunications biology2021

Tipiracil binds to uridine site and inhibits Nsp15 endoribonuclease NendoU from SARS-CoV-2.

Youngchang Kim, Jacek Wower, Natalia Maltseva, Changsoo Chang, Robert Jedrzejczak, Mateusz Wilamowski, Soowon Kang, Vlad Nicolaescu, Glenn Randall, Karolina Michalska and 1 more

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Communications biology, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 88 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
88citing papers in PubMed
8.7field-weighted citation impact, top 1% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

88 citing papers in PubMed, 132 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Review
  2. Review
  3. Article
  4. Review
  5. Article
  6. SARS-CoV-2 nsp15 enhances viral virulence by subverting host antiviral defenses.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2025
    Article
  7. Functional implications of hexameric dynamics in SARS-CoV-2 Nsp15.Protein science : a publication of the Protein Society · 2025
    Article
  8. Article
  9. Article
  10. Article
  11. Coronavirus endoribonuclease antagonizes ZBP1-mediated necroptosis and delays multiple cell death pathways.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2025
    Article
  12. Article
  13. Article
  14. Review
  15. Article
  16. Article
  17. Article
  18. COVID-19 drug discovery and treatment options.Nature reviews. Microbiology · 2024
    Review
  19. Article
  20. Review

28 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.

Youngchang Kim *Center for Structural Genomics of Infectious Diseases, Consortium for Advanced Science and Engineering, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, 60667, USA.
Jacek Wower *Department of Animal Sciences, Auburn University, Auburn, AL, 36849, USA.ORCID 0000-0001-8096-7745
Natalia MaltsevaCenter for Structural Genomics of Infectious Diseases, Consortium for Advanced Science and Engineering, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, 60667, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-2871-465X
Changsoo ChangCenter for Structural Genomics of Infectious Diseases, Consortium for Advanced Science and Engineering, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, 60667, USA.
Robert JedrzejczakCenter for Structural Genomics of Infectious Diseases, Consortium for Advanced Science and Engineering, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, 60667, USA.
Mateusz WilamowskiDepartment of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, 60367, USA.
Soowon KangDepartment of Microbiology, Ricketts Laboratory, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, 60367, USA.
Vlad NicolaescuDepartment of Microbiology, Ricketts Laboratory, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, 60367, USA.
Glenn RandallDepartment of Microbiology, Ricketts Laboratory, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, 60367, USA.
Karolina MichalskaCenter for Structural Genomics of Infectious Diseases, Consortium for Advanced Science and Engineering, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, 60667, USA.
Andrzej JoachimiakCenter for Structural Genomics of Infectious Diseases, Consortium for Advanced Science and Engineering, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, 60667, USA. andrzejj@anl.gov.ORCID 0000-0003-2535-6209
Argonne National Laboratory · USUniversity of Chicago · USAuburn University · US

Funding

NIAID NIH HHS HHSN272201700060C
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

SARS-CoV-2 Nsp15 is a uridine-specific endoribonuclease with C-terminal catalytic domain belonging to the EndoU family that is highly conserved in coronaviruses. As endoribonuclease activity seems to be responsible for the interference with the innate immune response, Nsp15 emerges as an attractive target for therapeutic intervention. Here we report the first structures with bound nucleotides and show how the enzyme specifically recognizes uridine moiety. In addition to a uridine site we present evidence for a second base binding site that can accommodate any base. The structure with a transition state analog, uridine vanadate, confirms interactions key to catalytic mechanisms. In the presence of manganese ions, the enzyme cleaves unpaired RNAs. This acquired knowledge was instrumental in identifying Tipiracil, an FDA approved drug that is used in the treatment of colorectal cancer, as a potential anti-COVID-19 drug. Using crystallography, biochemical, and whole-cell assays, we demonstrate that Tipiracil inhibits SARS-CoV-2 Nsp15 by interacting with the uridine binding pocket in the enzyme's active site. Our findings provide new insights for the development of uracil scaffold-based drugs.

Indexed as

COVID-19 Drug TreatmentA549 CellsAntiviral AgentsCatalytic DomainCOVID-19Crystallography, X-RayEndoribonucleasesEnzyme InhibitorsHumansLigandsModels, MolecularProtein ConformationPyrrolidinesSARS-CoV-2ThymineUridineAntiviral AgentsEndoribonucleasesEnzyme InhibitorsLigandsnidoviral uridylate-specific endoribonucleasePyrrolidinesThyminetipiracilUridineViral Nonstructural Proteins

Identifiers

PMID33564093
PMCPMC7873276
OpenAlexW3128571404

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.