Abstract
COVID-19 is a severe pandemic which has caused a devastating amount of loss in lives around the world, and yet we still don't know how to appropriately treat this disease. We know very little about the pathogenesis of SARS-CoV-2, the virus which induces the COVID-19. However, COVID-19 does share many similar symptoms with SARS and influenza. Previous scientific discoveries learned from lab animal models and clinical practices shed light on possible pathogenic mechanisms in COVID-19. In the past decades, accumulated scientific findings confirmed the pathogenic role of free radicals damage in respiratory virus infection. Astonishingly very few medical professionals mention the crucial role of free radical damage in COVID-19. This hypothesis aims to summarize the crucial pathogenic role of free radical damage in respiratory virus induced pneumonia and suggest an antioxidative therapeutic strategy for COVID-19.