Comprehensive analysis of drugs to treat SARS-CoV-2 infection: Mechanistic insights into current COVID-19 therapies (Review)

Nitulescu, George Mihai; Paunescu, Horia; Moschos, Sterghios A.; Petrakis, Dimitrios; Nitulescu, Georgiana; Ion, George Nicolae Daniel; Spandidos, Demetrios A.; Nikolouzakis, Taxiarchis Konstantinos; Drakoulis, Nikolaos; Tsatsakis, Aristidis

The major impact produced by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) focused many researchers attention to find treatments that can suppress transmission or ameliorate the disease. Despite the very fast and large flow of scientific data on possible treatment solutions, none have yet demonstrated unequivocal clinical utility against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). This work represents an exhaustive and critical review of all available data on potential treatments for COVID-19, highlighting their mechanistic characteristics and the strategy development rationale. Drug repurposing, also known as drug repositioning, and target based methods are the most used strategies to advance therapeutic solutions into clinical practice. Current in silico, in vitro and in vivo evidence regarding proposed treatments are summarized providing strong support for future research efforts.