Doxycycline as a potential partner of COVID-19 therapies
Alexandre E. Malek,
Bruno P. Granwehr,
Dimitrios P. Kontoyiannis
Affiliations
Alexandre E. Malek
Corresponding authors at: Department of Infectious Diseases, Infection Control and Employee Health, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 1515 Holcombe Boulevard, Houston, TX 77030, USA.; Department of Infectious Diseases, Infection Control and Employee Health, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
Bruno P. Granwehr
Department of Infectious Diseases, Infection Control and Employee Health, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
Dimitrios P. Kontoyiannis
Department of Infectious Diseases, Infection Control and Employee Health, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a major public health challenge, and the current antiviral arsenal for treatment is limited, with questionable efficacy. Major efforts are under way for discovery of new effective agents, but the validation of new potential treatments for COVID-19 may take a long time. Therefore, the repurposing of existing drugs for new indications is needed. In this article, we argue for the potential benefits of using doxycycline with either hydroxycholoroquine or other putative agents for COVID-19 treatment, as doxycycline has antiviral and anti-inflammatory activities by dampening the cytokine storm and to prevent lung damage.
