Antiviral Activity of Cannabidiolic Acid and Its Methyl Ester against SARS-CoV-2

Abstract

In the present study, the antiviral activity of cannabinoids isolated from Cannabis sativa L. was assessed in vitro against a panel of SARS-CoV-2 variants, indicating cannabidiolic acid (CBDA) was the most active. To overcome the instability issue of CBDA, its methyl ester was synthesized and tested for the first time for its antiviral activity. CBDA methyl ester showed a neutralizing effect on all the SARS-CoV-2 variants tested with greater activity than the parent compound. Its stability in vitro was confirmed by ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography (UHPLC) analysis coupled with high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS). In addition, the capacity of both CBDA and its derivative to interact with the virus spike protein was assessed in silico. These results showed that CBDA methyl ester can be considered as a lead compound to be further developed as a new effective drug against COVID-19 infection.