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Live Imaging and Quantification of Viral Infection in K18 hACE2 Transgenic Mice Using Reporter-Expressing Recombinant SARS-CoV-2
Published on: November 5, 2021
Treatment of coronavirus disease 2019
1Infectious Disease Division, Department of Medicine, Queen Mary Hospital, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China.
Purpose Of Review:
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a highly contagious and potentially lethal pandemic caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). No specific antiviral treatment is currently available. The purpose of this review is to highlight the main repurposed drug treatments with in-vitro or in-vivo efficacy against the SARS-CoV-2.
Recent Findings:
Recent clinical trials suggested remdesivir, IFN-β-1b and favipiravir have potential clinical and/or virological benefits on patients with COVID-19. Short course of stress dose of corticosteroids might be used as adjunctive treatment to patients who are late presenters with cytokine storm. Convalescent plasma from recovered COVID-19 patients with high neutralizing antibody might also be beneficial in the treatment of severe disease.
Summary:
Early effective antiviral therapy in COVID-19 patients will suppress the SARS-CoV-2 viral load. Adjunctive therapy with corticosteroid and convalescent plasma might further ameliorate the cytokine response. Further randomized clinical trials of combination therapy are needed.
Insights
Repurposed drugs like remdesivir and favipiravir show promise for treating coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Adjunctive therapies including corticosteroids and convalescent plasma may also benefit patients with severe COVID-19 symptoms.
Area of Science:
- Virology
- Infectious Diseases
- Pharmacology
Background:
- Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by SARS-CoV-2, is a global pandemic.
- Effective antiviral treatments for COVID-19 are urgently needed.
- Repurposed drugs are being investigated for their efficacy against SARS-CoV-2.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review repurposed drug treatments with demonstrated in-vitro or in-vivo efficacy against SARS-CoV-2.
- To highlight potential therapeutic options for COVID-19 management.
Main Methods:
- Literature review of clinical trials and in-vitro/in-vivo studies.
- Focus on repurposed medications and adjunctive therapies.
Main Results:
- Remdesivir, IFN-β-1b, and favipiravir show potential clinical and virological benefits in COVID-19 patients.
- Corticosteroids may be beneficial for late presenters with cytokine storm.
- Convalescent plasma with high neutralizing antibodies may aid severe COVID-19 treatment.
Conclusions:
- Early antiviral therapy can suppress SARS-CoV-2 viral load.
- Corticosteroids and convalescent plasma may mitigate cytokine responses.
- Further randomized clinical trials on combination therapies are essential.
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