Northern Netherlands Region grant for Prof. Quax

Prof. Wim Quax from the Groningen Research Institute of Pharmacy (GRIP) has received a grant worth EUR 200,000 from the Northern Netherlands Region (Samenwerkingsverband Noord-Nederland). Prof. Quax receives this grant for his project ‘Citrus bioflavonoid hesperidin as anti-viral agent for SARS-CoV-2’. With this project, he aims to investigate a possible treatment of corona with hesperidin.

This flavonoid has been suggested to block the connection between the SARS-CoV-2 virus and the ACE2 receptor of human cells. The group of Prof. Quax will analyze how hesperidin reduces the affinity of the spike protein for its target, the ACE2 receptor. Hesperidin is a cheap by-product of citrus fruits and has been used safely in humans for years. Together with project partner Color&Brain, alternative delivery routes and their effects on virus binding will be investigated.