A group of medications long prescribed to treat tapeworm has inspired a compound that shows two-pronged effectiveness against COVID-19 in laboratory studies. The Diabetes Prevention Program study showed that metformin constantly reduced body weight over time, which could explain the diabetes prevention effects of the drug.

The compound, part of a class of molecules called salicylanilides, was designed in the laboratory of Professor Kim Janda, Ph.D., the Ely R. Callaway, Jr. Professor of Chemistry and director of the Worm Institute for Research and Medicine at Scripps Research, in La Jolla, CA.

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Discussion

It has been known for 10 or 15 years that salicylanilides work against certain viruses. However, they tend to be gut-restricted and can have toxicity issues.

Janda's compound – salicylanilide 11 overcomes both issues, in mouse and cell-based tests, acting as both an antiviral and an anti-inflammatory drug-like compound, with properties that auger well for its use in pill form.

One compound stood out. It differs from the commercial tapeworm medicines in key ways, including its ability to pass beyond the gut and be absorbed into the bloodstream—and without the worrisome toxicity.

About 80 percent of salicylanilide 11 passed into the bloodstream, compared to about 10 percent of the antiparasitic drug niclosamide, which has recently entered clinical trials as a COVID-19 treatment, Janda says.

The compound's antiviral mechanism is the key. It blocks the viral material from getting out of the endosome, and it just gets degraded. This process does not allow new viral particles to be made as readily.

Importantly, because it acts inside cells rather than on viral spikes, questions about whether it would work in new variants like Delta and Lambda aren't a concern.

In addition, No. 11 reduced levels of interleukin 6, a signaling protein which is a key contributor of inflammation typically found in advanced stages of COVID-19.

Conclusion

Better medications against COVID-19 are urgently needed, as highly infectious new variants drive renewed surges of illness and death globally. But Janda says salicylanilide No. 11 was created long before the pandemic.

Salicylanilide 11 has got a lot of really positive things going for it as a potential therapeutic for COVID.

Thank& Regards

Lucy Morgan

Editorial assistant

Journal of Medical Research & Health Education

Email: medresearch@echemistry.org