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Brazilian researchers found that the Atazanavir, a medicine used to treat HIV-AIDS patients, is effective in inhibiting the viral replication of SARS-Cov-2, the virus that causes the disease of COVID-19, as reported on Monday by scientific sources.
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Studies by the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (Fiocruz), the largest medical research center in Latin America and linked to the Brazilian Ministry of Health, found that Atazanavir It is capable of slowing down the multiplication of the virus and it also reduces the inflammatory process in the lungs of patients who contract it.
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The medicine “reduced the production of proteins that are linked to the inflammatory process in the lungs and, therefore, prevented the aggravation of the clinical picture generated by the disease,” Fiocruz reported in a statement.
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The results of the study were published this Monday on the international scientific research platform BiorXiv in the form of preliminary investigation, as planned for investigations into the use of already existing medicines in the fight against the current health emergency, Fiocruz explained.
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“The analysis of drugs already approved for other uses is the fastest strategy that science can offer to help combat COVID-19, along with the adoption of ongoing social distancing protocols,” said the specialist. Thiago Moreno, Fiocruz researcher and project coordinator, quoted in the entity’s statement.
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Those responsible for the study also analyze the effectiveness of the combined use of Atazanavir and Ritonavir, another medicine used in the fight against the virus that transmits AIDS, in patients infected with SARS-Cov-2.
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According to Moreno, at this time it is necessary look for alternatives to treat COVID-19, a disease against which there is no vaccine or proven medicine so far, especially among substances already approved and with a higher level of safety than some of the molecules that have been suggested by the World Health Organization (WHO) for studies.
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The Atazanavir study is led by researchers from the Fiocruz Health Technology Development Center, but also involves scientists from the Oswaldo Cruz Institute, the Evandro Chagas National Institute of Infectology, the D’Or Research Institute (private) and the University Iguaçu.
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Moreno explained that the project chose to analyze Atazanavir because previous studies had already identified that one of the targets to be attacked in SARS-Cov-2 is the so-called “Mpro”, the enzyme capable of allowing the virus’s proteins to be manufactured correctly.
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The Brazilian researchers assumed that there is already scientific proof that Atazanavir has effects on Mpro and also indications that this medicine may be effective in treating respiratory problems.
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The researchers analyzed in the laboratory the molecular interaction of Atazanavir with the aforementioned virus enzyme. They also carried out experiments with the enzyme and tested the medicine, in vitro, on infected cells.
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Those responsible for the project found in the studies that the action of Atazanavir combined with Ritonavir is much superior in the fight against the COVID-19 virus than that observed when it is combined with chloroquine, a medicine that has been tested throughout the world. world to treat the new coronavirus.
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