- Ivermectin is an inhibitor of the COVID-19 causative virus (SARS-CoV-2) in vitro.
- A single treatment able to effect ~5000-fold reduction in virus at 48 h in cell culture.
- Ivermectin is FDA-approved for parasitic infections, and therefore has a potential for repurposing.
- Ivermectin is widely available, due to its inclusion on the WHO model list of essential medicines.
Abstract: Although several clinical trials are now underway to test possible therapies, the worldwide response to the COVID-19 outbreak has been largely limited to monitoring/containment. We report here that Ivermectin, an FDA-approved anti-parasitic previously shown to have broad-spectrum anti-viral activity in vitro, is an inhibitor of the causative virus (SARS-CoV-2), with a single addition to Vero-hSLAM cells 2 h post infection with SARS-CoV-2 able to effect ~5000-fold reduction in viral RNA at 48 h. Ivermectin therefore warrants further investigation for possible benefits in humans.
Read here (Science Direct, June 2020)
