3CLpro is a viral protease target, specifically the 3C-like protease used in inhibitor and modulator discovery for human norovirus and SARS-CoV-2. It functions as a binding target for screened compounds, and the entry highlights both HuNoV 3CLpro and SARS-CoV-2 3CLpro as relevant contexts. In human norovirus research, advanced virtual screening identified candidate inhibitors/modulators against chembl2028556, chembl3747799, and chembl393820, with docking performed using plants and scorch. In COVID-19-related work, leritrelvir is described as an approved drug targeting leritrelvir’s SARS-CoV-2 3CLpro reference mechanism. Overall, this protein is a drug-discovery focus for antiviral development, especially for protease inhibition in enteric and respiratory viral infections. Recent literature from 2026 emphasizes structure-based screening and repositioning strategies to expand 3CLpro-directed antiviral options.
Human norovirus
- A 2026 Journal of Biomolecular Structure & Dynamics study identified potential HuNoV 3CLpro inhibitors/modulators through advanced virtual screening. (PMID:40372208)
- The screening prioritized chembl2028556 as a candidate with potential HuNoV 3CLpro inhibition/modulation. (PMID:40372208)
- chembl3747799 was also flagged as a potential HuNoV 3CLpro inhibitor/modulator. (PMID:40372208)
- chembl393820 was another screened compound with potential activity against HuNoV 3CLpro. (PMID:40372208)
- Molecular docking against HuNoV 3CLpro used plants and scorch as computational tools. (PMID:40372208)
SARS-CoV-2 / COVID-19
- Leritrelvir was used as the approved COVID-19 drug reference targeting SARS-CoV-2 3CLpro in a 2026 Antiviral Research study. (PMID:41707713)
- The study framed 3CLpro as a protease target relevant to antiviral repositioning for coxsackievirus B4 and common enterovirus infections. (PMID:41707713)
- The SARS-CoV-2 3CLpro mechanism provides a benchmark for comparing protease-targeted antiviral strategies. (PMID:41707713)