Covid-19 has infected at least 2.47 million and killed 169 thousand people all over the world. At this time, no medicine has been proven against Covid-19. Vaccines are about a year away.
Because of the urgent need to treat and prevent deaths among Covid-19 patients, many existing drugs are being investigated to be used for Covid-19. Repurposing a drug is faster since it has been proven safe for use in humans when used for some other conditions.
Camostat is a drug that has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration in Japan for the treatment of several conditions like chronic pancreatitis and postoperative reflux esophagitis.
Peer-reviewed research published in Cell showed that Camostat can be a drug option for Covid-19. Camostat works by preventing the SARS-CoV-2 virus from adhering to cells. SARS-CoV-2 is the virus that causes Covid-19.
ACE2 Receptor and TMPRRS2
Two of the many ways that the SARS-CoV-2 can enter a cell is with the ACE2 receptors and TMPRSS2 gene.
The ACE2 receptor is on the surface of a human cell. It is where the spike protein from the Covid-19 virus can attach itself. The spikes surrounding the virus is what gives its name coronavirus.
Another way that the virus can attach is by using a gene present on human cells. That gene is the Transmembrane Serine Protease 2 or TMPRRS2. TMPRSS2 makes an enzyme called serine protease.
The Covid-19 virus uses the TMPRRS2 gene to make serine protease. The serine protease then primes the spikes of the Covid-19 virus so that it can attach to the human cells.
Once the Covid-19 viruses enter the cells, they start reproducing by replicating. Once cells get infected, the immune system attacks those infected cells.
The result is that the patient’s organs are damaged by the Covid-19 viruses and the body’s own immune response.
Many organs can get infected by the Covid-19 virus. The organs with ACE2 receptors and TMPRSS2 gene can be found in the article, Human Organs Targeted by Covid-19. Some of those organs like the lungs, heart, kidneys, and brain. They can fail at the same time and ultimately lead to death.
As of now, clinical trials are being made to see if Camostat will work on Covid-19. Even if approved, other drugs are still needed. That’s because the SARS-CoV-2 has many ways to enter human cells.
Stay healthy. Wear a mask and wash your hands often.
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Reference:
Hoffman et al. SARS-CoV-2 Cell Entry Depends on ACE2 and TMPRSS2 and Is Blocked by a Clinically Proven Protease Inhibitor. Cell. VOLUME 181, ISSUE 2, P271-280.E8, APRIL 16, 2020. Published: March 05, 2020. DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2020.02.052
Image Credit:
By CDC/ Alissa Eckert, MS; Dan Higgins, MAM – Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=86444014
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