A new treatment that mends cell damage, rather than fighting the SARS-CoV-2 virus, has been shown to be effective in lab models.
In what is the first study to show a combination of two drugs is more effective on virus replication in cells than a single drug, scientists at the University of Cambridge, UK, found that combining Ceapin-A7 and KIRA8 reduces the spread of SARS-CoV-2 infection in cells by up to 99.5%.
Writing in PLOS Pathogens, they say if this approach is safe for human use, it would make Covid-19 symptoms milder and would also speed up recovery times.
The team found all three branches of the unfolded protein response (UPR) are activated in lab-grown cells infected with SARS-CoV-2 and inhibiting the UPR to restore normal cell function using drugs was also found to significantly reduce virus replication.
Senior author Dr Nerea Irigoyen, of the University of Cambridge’s Department of Pathology said: “The virus that causes Covid-19 activates a response in our cells – called the UPR – that enables it to replicate.
“Using drugs, we were able to reverse the activation of this specific cellular pathway, and remarkably this reduced virus production inside the cells almost completely, which means the infection could not spread to other cells. This has exciting potential as an anti-viral strategy against SARS-CoV-2.”
The team says the new treatment targets the response of the infected cells and this would remain the same even if new variants emerge, because the virus needs this cellular response in order to replicate.
The researchers are to test the treatment in mouse models and want to establish if it works against other viruses, after they found it had an effect on the Zika virus, too. They will also look at illnesses such as pulmonary fibrosis and neurological disorders that also activate the UPR response in cells.
Echavarria-Consuegra L et al. Manipulation of the unfolded protein response: a pharmacological strategy against coronavirus infection. PLOS Pathogens 17 June 2021; doi:10.1371/journal.ppat.1009644
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