Abstract
Ginger (Zingiber officinale) is one of the most commonly consumed botanical foods. Owing to its anti-inflammatory and antiviral properties, ginger has been widely used as a homemade remedy during the corona virus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic; however, the mechanisms of its therapeutic activities against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) remain obscure. In this study, we used a drug-likeness approach to screen the active compounds of ginger. Next, we identified candidate targets of active compounds responsible for the anti-SARS-CoV-2 effects of ginger using chemical similarity searching and SARS-CoV-2-human protein-protein interaction (PPI) data. Finally, we analyzed PPIs, Gene Ontology enrichment, and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway enrichment of the candidate proteins using different bioinformatics tools. A network comprising ginger compounds, human proteins, and SARS-CoV-2 proteins was built through Cytoscape 3.3. The results indicate that the anti-SARS-CoV-2 activity of ginger involves 20 active compounds, 18 potential human targets, and 12 SARS-CoV-2 proteins. These form a pharmacological network in which sigma nonopioid intracellular receptor 1 (SIGMAR1) and histone deacetylase 2 may be druggable hub proteins. In addition, molecular docking showed that 8-gingerdione and dihydrocapsaicin may preferentially interact with SIGMAR1, which was confirmed by further molecular dynamics simulation (150 ns) experiments. In conclusion, ginger targets multiple human proteins and affects multiple SARS-CoV-2 proteins to exert anti-COVID-19 effects. Although further experimental verification is needed, this study provides a quick visual overview of the anti-SARS-CoV-2 action of ginger.
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