Repurposed Drugs/Potential Pharmacological Agents Targeting Cytokine Release and Induction of Coagulation in COVID-19

Global public health has been challenged by the coronavirus 2019 (COVID- 19) and has been a threat to clinical management to fight this viral infection. Due to the lack of specific therapies, there is a race among the scientific fraternity to find its specific cure to date. COVID-19 symptoms range from mild fatigue to potentially fatal pneumonia, cytokine storm (CS), and multi-organ failure. Hence, investigating the repurposing of current medications for use in the management of COVID-19 patients is a realistic approach. It is prudent to investigate using repurposed medications in the management of COVID-19 patients. In the meantime, researchers are testing a number of antiviral and immunomodulatory medicines to combat the infection. Although antiviral as well as supportive medications are undoubtedly vital in the treatment of COVID-19 patients, anti-inflammatory agents play an essential part in COVID-19 patient care due to their potential to prevent additional injury and organ damage and/or failure. Moreover, COVID-19-mediated infection can be linked with coagulopathy. The most common thrombotic events in COVID-19 are venous thromboembolic (VTE), which are linked with increased severity of disease and poor clinical outcomes. Here, we evaluated medicines that potentially modulate pro-inflammatory cytokines and assist in COVID-19 management. We emphasized various pro-inflammatory cytokines as targets of repurposed drugs and targeted induction coagulation in COVID- 19 patients using the available literature and studies.

Keywords: Anticoagulation, Coagulopathy, Cytokine storm, Interleukin-1, Interleukin-6, Pro-inflammatory cytokines, Repurposed drugs, SARS-CoV-2, Thrombosis, Tumor necrosis factor.