Interferon News and Research

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Could beta-blockers be a potential treatment for COVID-19?

News-Medical spoke to researchers about their latest research into beta-blockers, and how they could potentially be used to treat COVID-19.

27 Nov 2020

Novel cannabis plant extracts could protect against COVID-19

Researchers in Canada have conducted a study suggesting that novel Cannabis sativa extracts may decrease levels of the host cell receptor that severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) uses to gain viral entry to target tissues.

26 Nov 2020

Early interferon therapy may mitigate COVID-19 severity

A recent review of COVID-19 therapies explores the utility of interferons in the battle against severe COVID-19, and concludes that they deserve further development.

26 Nov 2020

BCG vaccination appears to trigger cross-reactive SARS-CoV-2-specific T cell response

Recently, researchers from the Monash University and Monash Medical Centre, Clayton, Victoria, Australia, investigated whether peptide sensitization using BCG can produce cross-reactive T cells specific to SARS-CoV-2. Their study is published on the preprint server, medRxiv.

24 Nov 2020

Mefloquine shows potential as anti-SARS-CoV-2 drug

A team of scientists from Japan has identified the approved anti-material drug, mefloquine, as a potential candidate to treat severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. Specifically, mefloquine has been shown to prevent the entry of SARS-CoV-2 into host cells and reduce the viral load in vitro.

24 Nov 2020

Mild COVID-19 disease may trigger long-term immunity

Researchers in the United States have conducted a study showing that individuals who have recovered from mild coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) developed sustained protective immune memory against the causative agent severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).

24 Nov 2020

The role of micro-RNA in SARS-CoV-2 infection and COVID-19

A team of researchers based in Iran have explored the role of micro-RNA in COVID-19. Their study titled, “The emerging role of microRNAs in the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection,” was published in the latest issue of the journal International Immunopharmacology.

24 Nov 2020

Favorable clinical outcome for ivermectin in COVID-19 animal model

A team of researchers at the Institut Pasteur in France has found that ivermectin prevented clinical deterioration in infected animals. The drug also reduced the inflammatory cytokines, interleukin-6 and 10 (IL-6 and IL-10) in lung tissue, which leads to more favorable clinical outcomes in treated animals.

23 Nov 2020

SARS-CoV-2 suppresses ACE2 activity in COVID-19 patients

A recent study conducted by a team of international scientists has revealed that severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the causative pathogen of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), suppresses the expression and function of human angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) and induces the expression of interferon-stimulated genes at the initial phase of infection. The study is currently available on the bioRxiv* preprint server.

20 Nov 2020

Scientists discover potential strategy to prevent inflammation in COVID-19 patients

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to cause significant illness and death while treatment options remain limited. St. Jude Children's Research Hospital scientists have discovered a potential strategy to prevent life-threatening inflammation, lung damage and organ failure in patients with COVID-19. The research appeared online in the journal Cell.

19 Nov 2020

SARS-CoV-2 causes a unique cytokine storm, study finds

A new study published on the preprint server medRxiv* in November 2020 reports some of the unique elements of COVID-19-induced CRS and how understanding these distinctive characteristics of the disease could help in formulating specific interventions and therapies.

18 Nov 2020

Chilblain-like skin lesions reported in adolescents and young adults during the pandemic

A team of investigators in the Department of Dermatology, Hospital Infantil Universitario Niño Jesús, Madrid, Spain and Dermatologia Pediatrica Association, Bari, Italy, say acral ischemic lesions, similar to chilblains, have been reported across the globe throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

17 Nov 2020

UCLA researchers pinpoint how smoking causes more severe COVID-19 infection

UCLA researchers using a model of airway tissue created from human stem cells have pinpointed how smoking cigarettes causes more severe infection by SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, in the airways of the lungs.

17 Nov 2020

Hydrogen therapy may help severely ill COVID-19 patients

Researchers from the Department of Critical Care Medicine, Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital, Chengdu in China, have explored the possibility of using hydrogen therapy on severely ill COVID-19 patients. The team published their study's findings, titled "Hydrogen: A Potential New Adjuvant Therapy for COVID-19 Patients," in the latest issue of the journal Frontiers in Pharmacology.

17 Nov 2020

Antifungal agent Itraconazole inhibits SARS CoV-2 in vitro

Itraconazole is a broad-spectrum antifungal agent that has been shown to have some in vitro activity against SARS-CoV-2 by a team of Belgian and German researchers.

16 Nov 2020

Drugs targeting neutrophils could reduce ARDS in severe COVID-19

Scientists in Taiwan recently published a report on their use of anti-neutrophil strategies to treat acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) – a life-threatening condition that can arise in critical COVID-19 cases – in the journal Frontiers in Pediatrics.

15 Nov 2020

Arthritis drug may improve COVID-19 survival among elderly patients

A type of arthritis drug may reduce the risk of dying for elderly patients with COVID-19.

15 Nov 2020

Inhaled nebulized interferon beta-1a (SNG001) helps COVID-19 patients recovers

Now, a team of researchers at the Synairgen Research, Southampton General Hospital, Southampton, United Kingdom, has found that inhaled nebulized interferon beta-1a (SNG001), a drug used for multiple sclerosis, helped COVID-19 patients have greater odds of improvement and recovery from SARS-CoV-2 infection.

15 Nov 2020

Antimalarials could disrupt SARS-CoV-2’s Nsp1 translation termination

A research team from the Engelhardt Institute of Molecular Biology in Russia have shown that Nsp1 – a non-structured protein present in the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pathogen – stimulates translation termination in the stop codon recognition stage. Studying and developing drugs that compete with Nsp1 for binding with the termination complex could therefore be a potential strategy for fighting against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

15 Nov 2020

SARS-CoV-2-induces temporary loss of smell in mice

Now, a new study published on the preprint server bioRxiv in November 2020 presents the onset of olfactory dysfunction (loss of smell) in mice infected with the virus, examining this process at the cellular level. In doing so, this study throws more light on this curious symptom and COVID-19’s manifestations outside the lungs.

12 Nov 2020