Aim of study
In this study, we conducted an experiment in SARS-CoV-2-infected hamsters to determine the efficacy of fingerroot extract in vivo. Materials and
Background
The outbreak of COVID-19 has led to the suffering of people around the world, with an inaccessibility of specific and effective medication. Fingerroot extract, which showed in vitro anti-SARS-CoV-2 activity, could alleviate the deficiency of antivirals and reduce the burden of health systems.
Conclusion
Fingerroot extract was shown to be a potential of reducing lung inflammation and cytokines in hamsters. Further studies of the full pharmacokinetics and toxicity are required before entering into clinical development.
Methods
The infected hamsters were orally administered with vehicle control, fingerroot extract 300 or 1000 mg/kg, or favipiravir 1000 mg/kg at 48 h post-infection for 7 consecutive days. The hamsters (n = 12 each group) were sacrificed at day 2, 4 and 8 post-infection to collect the plasma and lung tissues for analyses of viral output, lung histology and lung concentration of panduratin A.
Results
All animals in treatment groups reported no death, while one hamster in the control group died on day 3 post-infection. All treatments significantly reduced lung pathophysiology and inflammatory mediators, PGE2 and IL-6, compared to the control group. High levels of panduratin A were found in both the plasma and lung of infected animals.