Anti-depressants and COVID-19: A New Ray of Hope

The coronavirus disease pandemic has grown worldwide. As we understand the exact pathophysiology of the disease and how it affects the systems in the human body, we are in the process of discovering and repositioning drugs potentially effective in these regards. A few targets of these drugs are excessive inflammation following SARS-CoV-2 infection and sigma-1 receptor ER chaperone protein, which plays a role in replication. The recent discovery of antidepressants like fluvoxamine and clomipramine acting through these targets may provide a new ray of hope to decrease mortality and morbidity in severe COVID patients.