Preprint Hypothesis Version 1 Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed

Lysosomotropic Active Compounds—Hidden Protection against COVID-19 / SARS-CoV-2 Infection?

Version 1 : Received: 4 May 2020 / Approved: 5 May 2020 / Online: 5 May 2020 (04:29:48 CEST)

How to cite: Blaess, M.; Kaiser, L.; Sauer, M.; Deigner, H.-P. Lysosomotropic Active Compounds—Hidden Protection against COVID-19 / SARS-CoV-2 Infection?. Preprints 2020, 2020050061. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202005.0061.v1 Blaess, M.; Kaiser, L.; Sauer, M.; Deigner, H.-P. Lysosomotropic Active Compounds—Hidden Protection against COVID-19 / SARS-CoV-2 Infection?. Preprints 2020, 2020050061. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202005.0061.v1

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic is one of the largest challenges in medicine and health care worldwide in recent decades, and it is infecting and killing increasing numbers of people every day. In this paper, we discuss the possible relationships among lysosomotropism, increasing lysosomal pH, and the SARS-CoV-2 infection and disease process, and we deduce a possible approach for treatment and prophylaxis. Lysosomotropism is a biological characteristic of small molecules, such as (hydroxyl)chloroquine, amitriptyline, NB 06, or sertraline, which is present in addition to intrinsic receptor-mediated or enzymatic pharmacological effects. Lysosomotropic compounds affect prominent inflammatory messengers, such as IL1B, CCL4, CCL20, and IL6, as well as cathepsin L dependent viral entry (fusion) into host cells. Therefore, this heterogeneous group of compounds is a promising candidate for the prevention and treatment of SARS-CoV-2 infections, as well as influenza A infections and cytokine release syndrome (CRS) triggered by bacterial or viral infections. Patients who have already taken medications with lysosomotropic compounds for other pre-existing conditions may benefit from this treatment in the COVID-19 pandemic. Increased lysosomal pH levels play an important role in the disease process in common skin disorders, such as psoriasis and atopic dermatitis, thus suggesting that affected individuals might benefit from their particular conditions in the COVID-19 pandemic. We suggest data analysis of patients with these diseases, and who are treated with lysosomotropic compounds, and, if the results are promising, subsequent clinical testing of off-label therapy with clinically approved lysosomotropic compounds in the current COVID-19 pandemic and future influenza A pandemics.

Keywords

SARS-CoV-2; COVID-19; Lysosomotropism; Chloroquine

Subject

Medicine and Pharmacology, Pharmacology and Toxicology

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