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AuthorWehbe, Zena
AuthorWehbe, Maya
AuthorIratni, Rabah
AuthorPintus, Gianfranco
AuthorZaraket, Hassan
AuthorYassine, Hadi M
AuthorEid, Ali H
Available date2021-11-29T09:42:02Z
Publication Date2021-03-30
Publication NameFrontiers in Immunology
Identifierhttp://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fimmu.2021.663586
CitationWehbe Z, Wehbe M, Iratni R, Pintus G, Zaraket H, Yassine HM and Eid AH (2021) Repurposing Ivermectin for COVID-19: Molecular Aspects and Therapeutic Possibilities. Front. Immunol. 12:663586. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.663586
Identifier663586
URIhttp://hdl.handle.net/10576/25185
AbstractAs of January 2021, SARS-CoV-2 has killed over 2 million individuals across the world. As such, there is an urgent need for vaccines and therapeutics to reduce the burden of COVID-19. Several vaccines, including mRNA, vector-based vaccines, and inactivated vaccines, have been approved for emergency use in various countries. However, the slow roll-out of vaccines and insufficient global supply remains a challenge to turn the tide of the pandemic. Moreover, vaccines are important tools for preventing the disease but therapeutic tools to treat patients are also needed. As such, since the beginning of the pandemic, repurposed FDA-approved drugs have been sought as potential therapeutic options for COVID-19 due to their known safety profiles and potential anti-viral effects. One of these drugs is ivermectin (IVM), an antiparasitic drug created in the 1970s. IVM later exerted antiviral activity against various viruses including SARS-CoV-2. In this review, we delineate the story of how this antiparasitic drug was eventually identified as a potential treatment option for COVID-19. We review SARS-CoV-2 lifecycle, the role of the nucleocapsid protein, the turning points in past research that provided initial 'hints' for IVM's antiviral activity and its molecular mechanism of action- and finally, we culminate with the current clinical findings.
Languageen
PublisherFrontiers Media
SubjectCOVID-19
SARS-CoV-2
coronavirus
ivermectin
mechanism of action
TitleRepurposing Ivermectin for COVID-19: Molecular Aspects and Therapeutic Possibilities
TypeArticle
Volume Number12
dc.accessType Open Access


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