Study: Heartburn Medicine Doesn't Work as COVID-19 Antiviral
July 29, 2020| |
Anecdotal reports from China indicated that COVID-19 patients who were taking famotidine for heartburn had reduced rates of intubation and mortality compared to those who took a different kind of antacid drugs. However, preliminary results of a study conducted by Boston University and partners showed that famotidine has no antiviral effect against SARS-CoV-2.
The researchers systematically analyzed the effect of famotidine on viral proteases and virus replication and found that famotidine neither binds with nor inhibits SARS-CoV-2 proteases. Furthermore, no direct antiviral activity of famotidine was found at concentrations of up to 200 μM, when tested against SARS-CoV-2 in two different cell lines, including a human cell line originating from lungs, a primary target of COVID-19. However, the researchers said they are not concluding that the drug might be helpful in other ways.
"We're not challenging that famotidine might help...We're saying that the mechanism of action is not antiviral," said Mohsan Saeed, a virologist from Boston University and one of the authors of the study.
Read more details in Science News and bioRxiv.
| |
You might also like:
- COVID-19 Treatment Efforts Using Plant Technologies
- Genes Linked to COVID-19 Risk Inherited from Neanderthals
- Scientists Say COVID-19 Coronavirus Has Natural Origins
Biotech Updates is a weekly newsletter of ISAAA, a not-for-profit organization. It is distributed for free to over 22,000 subscribers worldwide to inform them about the key developments in biosciences, especially in biotechnology. Your support will help us in our mission to feed the world with knowledge. You can help by donating as little as $10.
-
See more articles:
-
News from Around the World
- ISAAA Video Shows How to Genetically Engineer a Plant
- Cuba Passes Law to Create Regulating Commission for the Use of GMOs
- German Researchers Decode European Maize Genome
-
Research Highlights
- Gene Switches for Height Identified in Plants
-
Plant
- UC Davis Scientists Use CRISPR Technology to Develop Bull that Produces 75% Male Offspring
- CRISPR-Cas9 Sheds Light on Spikelet Development in Rice
- Scientists Describe Protocol for Multi-gene Genome Editing in Maize
- 132 Research Institutes and Associations Urge the EU to Reconsider Stance on Genome Editing
-
Health
- Moderna's COVID-19 Vaccine Advances to Phase 3 COVE Study
- Study: Heartburn Medicine Doesn't Work as COVID-19 Antiviral
- International Team of Researchers Identify Evolutionary Origins of SARS-CoV-2
-
Read the latest: - Biotech Updates (December 4, 2024)
- Gene Editing Supplement (November 27, 2024)
- Gene Drive Supplement (February 22, 2023)
-
Subscribe to BU: - Share
- Tweet