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Chloroquine, an anti-malarial drug known for 70 years, gave hope for a victory against the coronavirus pandemic. Initially considered a remedy for COVID-19, it was later warned of dangerous side effects and a lack of evidence of its effectiveness. The latest study even showed that this drug does not protect the lungs – the main organ attacked by SARS-CoV-2.
Chloroquine in the treatment of COVID-19 – great hopes
The whole world is intensely looking for a cure for COVID-19. In search of effective therapies, one tries to use existing drugs originally used for other purposes. Initially, high hopes were pinned on the agent used in the prevention and treatment of malaria – chloroquine, which has been known for 70 years (it is also used as an anti-inflammatory drug in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and lupus erythematosus).
The first reports of chloroquine as a potentially effective drug supporting the treatment of SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus infection appeared shortly after the COVID-19 epidemic. Soon its effectiveness was tested in clinical trials in Chinese hospitals. It was observed that the drug inhibited further worsening of pneumonia and shortened the course of the disease. No serious side effects were reported. Later studies, carried out on a much larger number of patients, largely did not confirm these results.
Despite little evidence of chloroquine’s effectiveness, it has started to be used to treat and prevent COVID-19.
Information that chloroquine may be effective in treating the coronavirus caused the demand for this drug to increase rapidly around the world. There were situations where the drug could not be given to patients who took it regularly.
Side effects of using chloroquine
At the same time, information about potentially dangerous side effects associated with taking chloroquine began to appear more and more often
– Doctors and patients should be aware of several rare but potentially life-threatening side effects of chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine (a derivative of chloroquine – ed) warned in April Dr. David Juurlink from the Sunnybrook Health Sciences Center Clinical Pharmacology and Toxicology Department (statement for PAP ).
Potential side effects included heart rhythm disturbances, lowering blood sugar levels (hypoglycaemia), neuropsychiatric symptoms (agitation, confusion, hallucinations and paranoia). There were also indications of possible interactions with other drugs – very toxic effects in case of overdose (convulsions, coma and cardiac arrest).
In March this year. WHO announced the launch of a global study to test the effectiveness of four drugs against COVID-19, including chloroquine. In May, WHO said it had temporarily suspended research on these drugs for safety reasons. After 10 days, the organization resumed research on chloroquine.
Further information on the effectiveness of chloroquine in fighting COLVID-19 is provided by a study by scientists from Germany (on July 22 it was published in “Nature”, one of the most prestigious scientific journals). It showed that chloroquine does not protect lung cells – the main organ attacked by SARS-CoV-2.
The experiment showed that while chloroquine inhibits penetration of SARS-CoV-2 into monkey kidney cells, it is not able to prevent coronavirus infection of human lung cells and the subsequent spread of the virus in these cells.
– In our study, we showed that the antiviral activity of chloroquine is specific to selected cells and that chloroquine does not block infection of lung cells. This means that in future tests of potential drugs against COVID-19, care should be taken to use the right cell lines so as not to waste time and other resources unnecessarily – says Prof. Stefan Pöhlmann, one of the authors of the study and head of the Department of Infection Biology at the German Primate Center, added: “ COVID-19 is primarily caused by infection in the cells of the lungs. For this reason, these cells should be prioritized in performance testing.
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