Pancreatitis drug blocks SARS-CoV-2 activators in the upper respiratory tract
Pancreatitis drug Camostat inhibits new SARS-CoV-2 activators identified in the upper respiratory tract.
There are no therapeutics available that have been developed for COVID-19 treatment. Repurposing already available medication for COVID-19 therapy is an attractive option to shorten the road to treatment development.
The drug Camostat could be suitable. Camostat exerts antiviral activity by blocking the protease TMPRSS2, which is used by SARS-CoV-2 for entry into cells.
However, it was previously unknown whether SARS-CoV-2 can use TMPRSS2-related proteases for cell entry and whether these proteases can be blocked by Camostat. Moreover, it was unclear whether the metabolization of Camostat interferes with antiviral activity.
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