Repurposed Drugs, Molecular Vaccines, Immune‐Modulators, and Nanotherapeutics to Treat and Prevent COVID‐19 Associated with SARS‐CoV‐2, a Deadly Nanovector

Dube, Taru; Mishra, Jibanananda; Kompella, Uday B.; Panda, Jiban Jyoti

doi:10.1002/adtp.202000172

Cited by 36 publications

(46 citation statements)

References 146 publications

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“…At the moment, there are no generally proven effective therapy for COVID-19 but, thanks to joint efforts of scientific communities, three vaccines are now available worldwide ( https://ourworldindata.org/covid-vaccinations ). As reviewed by Dube et al ( 2020 ), antivirals can be broadly categorized into two classes: the first includes those targeting viral proteins involved in the viral life cycle or virus structure, and the other those mostly targeting host proteins, which are important for viral infection or the host's immune response.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pomegranate Peel Extract as an Inhibitor of SARS-CoV-2 Spike Binding to Human ACE2 Receptor (in vitro): A Promising Source of Novel Antiviral Drugs

Tito¹,

Colantuono²,

Pirone

et al. 2021

Front. Chem.

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Plant extracts are rich in bioactive compounds, such as polyphenols, sesquiterpenes, and triterpenes, which potentially have antiviral activities. As a consequence of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) virus, thousands of scientists have been working tirelessly trying to understand the biology of this new virus and the disease pathophysiology, with the main goal of discovering effective preventive treatments and therapeutic agents. Plant-derived secondary metabolites may play key roles in preventing and counteracting the rapid spread of SARS-CoV-2 infections by inhibiting the activity of several viral proteins, in particular those involved in the virus entry into the host cells and its replication. Using in vitro approaches, we investigated the role of a pomegranate peel extract (PPE) in attenuating the interaction between the SARS-CoV-2 Spike glycoprotein and the human angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 receptor, and on the activity of the virus 3CL protease. Although further studies will be determinant to assess the efficacy of this extract in vivo, our results opened new promising opportunities to employ natural extracts for the development of effective and innovative therapies in the fight against SARS-CoV-2.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pomegranate Peel Extract as an Inhibitor of SARS-CoV-2 Spike Binding to Human ACE2 Receptor (in vitro): A Promising Source of Novel Antiviral Drugs

Tito¹,

Colantuono²,

Pirone

et al. 2021

Front. Chem.

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“…Based on these realities and due to the absence of speci c drugs capable of inducing protective immunity against SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19, several investigators have opted to use repurposed drugs [22][23][24].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Repurposing NASVAC, a hepatitis B therapeutic vaccine, for pre- and postexposure prophylaxis of SARS-CoV-2 infection

Akbar

Mahtab

Aguilar

et al. 2021

Preprint

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Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and the subsequent coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) have led to tens of millions of cases and millions of deaths around the world. Although more than a year has passed since the emergence of COVID-19, more waves of the pandemic, with new variants of the deadly virus, have been reported. It seems that the virus will continue to infect people for years or decades to come and thus lead to more illnesses and deaths. The experiences last year regarding limiting the transmission of the virus indicate that one or more traditional methods of containment may not be effective; further, even vaccination may not give immunity to society. On the other hand, eliminating the virus using drugs capable of eradicating SARS-CoV-2 from the infected host may not be an achievable goal. Based on these realities and after exploring the mechanism underlying the acquisition of the virus and pathogenesis of COVID-19, we assumed that immune therapy may be a practical option for the containment of SARS-CoV-2. In this study, we repurposed an immune modulator containing two antigens of hepatitis B virus, hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) and hepatitis B core antigen (HBcAg) (termed NASVAC, Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, CIGB, Havana, Cuba), to gain insight into its role against SARS-CoV-2. NASVAC induced cytokines of innate immunity following nasal administration and prevented all 20 volunteers from being diagnosed with SARS-CoV-2 during the two weeks of usage. Four volunteers were infected with SARS-CoV-2 two weeks after the end of NASVAC administration; three of them showed almost no symptoms and recovered without any intervention, and one with several comorbidities attended a hospital for four days and recovered completely. In conclusion, the administration of NASVAC to subjects at risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection was safe. The pattern of cytokine responses and absence of infection or mild COVID-19 infection of the subjects involved in the study are preliminary evidence indicating that this product may prevent or suppress SARS-CoV-2 infection at the initial stages of SARS-CoV-2 acquisition and/or replication and deserve further exploratory trials to confirm the capacity of NASVAC as pre/postexposure prophylaxis or pre-emptive therapy in the context of SARS-CoV-2 infection.

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“…Despite the efforts of innumerous researchers focusing on finding a therapeutic agent targeting directly SARS-CoV-2, a very incipient progress has been achieved in identifying curative therapies. By October 2020, many of the potential drugs/vaccines still figured as possible COVID-19 therapeutic agents and extensive clinical studies were warranted to verify their safety and efficacy (50). Regarding that containing the spread of the infection is the best way to control the COVID-19 pandemic, a vaccine that prevents future infections must be considered as a key priority.…”

Section: Hydroxychloroquine and Azithromycin On Sars-cov-2 Infection:mentioning

confidence: 99%

Management of SARS-CoV-2 Infection: Key Focus in Macrolides Efficacy for COVID-19

et al. 2021

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Macrolides (e.g., erythromycin, fidaxomicin, clarithromycin, and azithromycin) are a class of bacteriostatic antibiotics commonly employed in medicine against various gram-positive and atypical bacterial species mostly related to respiratory tract infections, besides they possess anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory effects. Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) is an infectious disease caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome of coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). It was first detected in Wuhan, Hubei, China, in December 2019 and resulted in a continuing pandemic. Macrolides have been extensively researched as broad adjunctive therapy for COVID-19 due to its immunostimulant abilities. Among such class of drugs, azithromycin is described as azalide and is well-known for its ability to decrease the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines, including matrix metalloproteinases, tumor necrosis factor-alpha, interleukin (IL)-6, and IL-8. In fact, a report recently published highlighted the effectiveness of combining azithromycin and hydroxychloroquine for COVID-19 treatment. Indeed, it has been underlined that azithromycin quickly prevents SARS-CoV-2 infection by raising the levels of both interferons and interferon-stimulated proteins at the same time which reduces the virus replication and release. In this sense, the current review aims to evaluate the applications of macrolides for the treatment of COVID-19.

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Repurposed Drugs, Molecular Vaccines, Immune‐Modulators, and Nanotherapeutics to Treat and Prevent COVID‐19 Associated with SARS‐CoV‐2, a Deadly Nanovector

Cited by 36 publications

References 146 publications

Pomegranate Peel Extract as an Inhibitor of SARS-CoV-2 Spike Binding to Human ACE2 Receptor (in vitro): A Promising Source of Novel Antiviral Drugs

Pomegranate Peel Extract as an Inhibitor of SARS-CoV-2 Spike Binding to Human ACE2 Receptor (in vitro): A Promising Source of Novel Antiviral Drugs

Repurposing NASVAC, a hepatitis B therapeutic vaccine, for pre- and postexposure prophylaxis of SARS-CoV-2 infection

Management of SARS-CoV-2 Infection: Key Focus in Macrolides Efficacy for COVID-19

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