Frontiers in Microbiology (Nov 2023)

Tumor Treating Fields (TTFields) demonstrate antiviral functions in vitro, and safety for application to COVID-19 patients in a pilot clinical study

  • Avraham Abutbul,
  • Helena Mumblat,
  • Yaara Porat,
  • Nehemya Friedman,
  • Nofar Atari,
  • Shirley Sharabi,
  • Ahmad Nama,
  • Waseem Mugahed,
  • Asa Kessler,
  • Yotam Kolben,
  • Reuben Ruby Shamir,
  • Doron Manzur,
  • Ori Farber,
  • Liora Bosch,
  • Gitit Lavy-Shahaf,
  • Eyal Dor-On,
  • Adi Haber,
  • Moshe Giladi,
  • Uri Weinberg,
  • Yoram Palti,
  • Yael Mardor,
  • Yael Mardor,
  • Michal Mandelboim,
  • Michal Mandelboim

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2023.1296558
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 14

Abstract

Read online

Coronaviruses are the causative agents of several recent outbreaks, including the COVID-19 pandemic. One therapeutic approach is blocking viral binding to the host receptor. As binding largely depends on electrostatic interactions, we hypothesized possible inhibition of viral infection through application of electric fields, and tested the effectiveness of Tumor Treating Fields (TTFields), a clinically approved cancer treatment based on delivery of electric fields. In preclinical models, TTFields were found to inhibit coronavirus infection and replication, leading to lower viral secretion and higher cell survival, and to formation of progeny virions with lower infectivity, overall demonstrating antiviral activity. In a pilot clinical study (NCT04953234), TTFields therapy was safe for patients with severe COVID-19, also demonstrating preliminary effectiveness data, that correlated with higher device usage.

Keywords