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Lithium salts as a treatment for COVID-19: Pre-clinical outcomes.
- Source :
-
Biomedicine & pharmacotherapy = Biomedecine & pharmacotherapie [Biomed Pharmacother] 2022 May; Vol. 149, pp. 112872. Date of Electronic Publication: 2022 Mar 25. - Publication Year :
- 2022
-
Abstract
- Introduction: Identifying effective drugs for Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is urgently needed. An efficient approach is to evaluate whether existing approved drugs have anti-SARS-CoV-2 effects. The antiviral properties of lithium salts have been studied for many years. Their anti-inflammatory and immune-potentiating effects result from the inhibition of glycogen synthase kinase-3.<br />Aims: To obtain pre-clinical evidence on the safety and therapeutic effects of lithium salts in the treatment of COVID-19.<br />Results: Six different concentrations of lithium, ranging 2-12 mmol/L, were evaluated. Lithium inhibited the replication of SARS-CoV-2 virus in a dose-dependent manner with an IC <subscript>50</subscript> value of 4 mmol/L. Lithium-treated wells showed a significantly higher percentage of monolayer conservation than viral control, particularly at concentrations higher than 6 mmol/L, verified through microscopic observation, the neutral red assay, and the determination of N protein in the supernatants of treated wells. Hamsters treated with lithium showed less intense disease with fewer signs. No lithium-related mortality or overt signs of toxicity were observed during the experiment. A trend of decreasing viral load in nasopharyngeal swabs and lungs was observed in treated hamsters compared to controls.<br />Conclusions: These results provide pre-clinical evidence of the antiviral and immunotherapeutic effects of lithium against SARS-CoV-2, which supports an advance to clinical trials on COVID-19's patients.<br /> (Copyright © 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS.. All rights reserved.)
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 1950-6007
- Volume :
- 149
- Database :
- MEDLINE
- Journal :
- Biomedicine & pharmacotherapy = Biomedecine & pharmacotherapie
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 35364381
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biopha.2022.112872