Israeli researchers from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem said they found how and existing drug, used for treating excessive fat in blood cells, could be effective in significantly reducing the severity of coronavirus.
Prof. Ya’acov Nahmias and Mount Sinai Medical Center’s Dr. Benjamin tenOever claimed in a new research that the FDA-approved drug called "Fenofibrate" (Tricor), normally used to treat high cholesterol, could make the effects of COVID-19 feel like a common cold or eradicate it from the lungs altogether.
The research, done over the past three months by Prof. Nahmias' team and scientists at Mount Sinai, postulates the novel coronavirus needs an accumulation of fat inside lung cells in order to reproduce itself.
“By understanding how the SARS-CoV-2 (scientific name for coronavirus) controls our metabolism, we can wrestle back control from the virus and deprive it of the very resources it needs to survive,” Nahmias told the Jerusalem Post.
The findings of the study explain why high blood sugar and cholesterol levels, are highly dangerous factors for COVID-19 carriers, even without having diabetes.
Using different lung samples, the drug was able to eradicate the virus almost completely within five days of treatment, according to the research.
“Our findings may indeed significantly reduce the global burden of COVID-19,” Dr. tenOever said as quoted by outlet Globes.