The corona virus continues to make headlines worldwide. German scientists are now said to be on the track of a drug against the virus.
- The coronavirus * continues to spread.
- Meanwhile, you're looking for a drug
- German scientists from the German Primate Center (DPZ) are looking for a means
Munich - The corona virus continues to spread. The situation in Italy after the outbreak of the corona virus is serious. There are now almost 6,000 infected and over 230 dead (as of March 8, 2020). In Italy, travel is now banned for almost 16 million people.
The situation is also worsening in Germany due to the Sars-CoV-2 * coronavirus. German scientists are now on the track of a drug against the virus.
Video: Coronavirus - can boss ask for home office or forced leave?
Coronavirus: TMPRSS2 Enzyme The Key To A Drug?
As the German Primate Center (DZP) reports on its website, tests were carried out in collaboration with colleagues from the Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin to find out how the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 * penetrates cells. Coronaviruses therefore require a protease or an enzyme called TMPRSS2 to penetrate the lung cells .
"Our results show that SARS-CoV-2 needs the protease TMPRSS2 present in the human body in order to penetrate into the host cell," said Stefan Pöhlmann , head of the infection biology department at the DZP. This provided a starting point for fighting the virus, Pöhlmann continued.
"An existing drug that inhibits this protease could therefore be a promising treatment option," said the DZP.
Coronavirus drug: "Tests suggest that ..."
The enzyme TMPRSS2 was discovered by the drug Camostat Mesilate , which was approved in Japan and was originally used for inflammation of the pancreas. "We tested SARS-CoV-2 from a patient and found that Camostat Mesilate blocks the entry of the virus into lung cells," says infection biologist Dr. Markus Hoffmann quoted on the DZP website.
Hoffmann also confirmed to the picture (article behind payment barrier) that the results would suggest that Camostat Mesilate could also protect against the disease COVID-19. "This should be investigated in the context of clinical studies." However, how long this will take remains unclear. So far, there is only talk of a potential drug.
So far, it has also looked rather bad for a vaccine for the coronavirus. As Lothar Wieler, head of the Robert Koch Institute, said that a vaccine should not be used before 2021.
Also worth reading: How dangerous previous illnesses in connection with the corona virus are, explains a Munich doctor at tz.de *.
Corona virus: The isolation of metropolises such as Milan and Venice shows how controversial the situation is now. Commentary from Merkur editor-in-chief Georg Anastasiadis.
mbr
* Merkur.de and tz.de are part of the nationwide Ippen-Digital editors network.