Table 1.
Chemical drugs in clinical registrations to treat COVID-19.
| Name | Original indication | Target | Clinical trials reported | Dose/administration | Toxicities/side effects |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Western medicine | |||||
| Remdesivir | Ebola virus disease (Phase II); | RNA-dependent RNA polymerase inhibitor | Yes | A 10-day course of remdesivir treatment, 200 mg intravenously on day 1, 100 mg for next 9 days | None noted (similar to placebo in severe COVID patients) |
| Chloroquine/Hydroxychloroquine | Malaria treatment | Caps hemozoin to prevent biocrystallization of heme, PLpro inhibitor | Yes |
Chloroquine: 500 mg daily for 10 days HCQ: weight > 50 kg, 500 mg × 2/d for 7 days; weight < 50 kg, 500 mg × 2/d on days 1 ~ 2, 500 mg/d on days 3 ~ 7; |
Hemolytic anemia, cardiomyopathy, neutropenia, GI disturbances, retinopathy, rash, QT prolongation |
| Lopinavir/ritonavir | A fixed dose combination for HIV/AID treatment |
Lopinavir: protease inhibitor Ritonavir: protease inhibitor and inhibitor of CYP3A4 |
Yes | Oral, 400 mg/100 mg, twice daily | QT prolongation, CV events, dyslipidemia, liver injury, GI disturbances |
| Arbidol | Influenza treatment | Inhibits viral entry by interfering with clathrin-dependent trafficking | Yes | 200 mg × 3/d for no more than 10 d | No significant differences between ARB-treated and control groups |
| Teicoplanin | A glycopeptide antibiotic to treat bacterial infection | Inhibits viral entry by inhibiting the activity of cathepsin L | No | does not have dose-related adverse effects in the dose range 3–10 mg/kg | |
| Glycyrrhizic Acid | An extract of a traditional Chinese herb to treat coughs, colds and disturbed digestion | Regulate immune function, can bind to ACE2 | Yes | 250 mg standardized extract (25% Glycyrrhizin—62.5 mg) for 10 days | mild hypertension, cytotoxicity and bone damage |
| Darunavir | A fixed dose combination for HIV/AID treatment | 3CL protease inhibitor, substrate of CYP3A4 | Yes | 800 mg/days | Liver injury, dyslipidemia, sulfonamide allergy |
| Forsythin and Chlorogenic acid | Extract of a traditional Chinese herb to treat influenza | ACE2 inhibitor | No | ||
| Tocilizumab | Commonly used for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and cytokine-release syndrome induced by chimeric antigen receptor-T cell therapy | FCGR3A, IL6R, CD69,GALNT18 | Yes | 4–8 mg/kg body weight | Thrombocytopenia, liver injury, neutropenia, rash, hypertension, infection |
| Interferon beta-1b | Pharmacogenomics determinants are not well-delineated for IFN-β1b | Yes | 8 million IU (0.25 mg) on alternate days | Liver injury, depression, heart failure, leukopenia, and flu-like symptoms, etc. | |
| Dexamethasone | First-line treatment for immune-related complications | Suppresses the immune system by inhibiting naive T cell proliferation and differentiation | Yes | 6 mg once daily for 10 days | Mild increase of blood glucose level, ocular hypertension, and cataract, mood and behavior change, osteoporosis |
| Traditional Chinese medicine | |||||
| Qingfei Paidu Decoction | A traditional Chinese medicine for treating exogenous fever caused by cold evil | The network pharmacology analysis showed that QPD has an overall regulatory effect via multi-component and multi-target | Yes | ||
| Qingfei dayuan granules & Chaihu daxiong mixture | For COVID-19 patients with severe cough, sputum, and wheezing | No | |||
| Huashi Baidu Granules | First approval drug of traditional Chinese medicine for the clinical treatment of COVID-19 | Eliminate inflammation, improve immunity | Yes | ||
| Lianhuaqingwen | As traditional Chinese medicine formula to treat influenza | Inhibits the SARS-COV-2 replication, affects virus morphology and exerts anti-inflammatory activity in vitro | Yes | 4 capsules, 3 times a day, after meal | No toxic side effects in mice |
The information is retrieved from the Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (http://www.chictr.org.cn/index.aspx) and Clinicaltrials.gov as of May 27th, 2020.