Ivermectin shows promise as potential COVID-19 therapy.
Summary: An FDA-approved anti-parasitic drug called Ivermectin appears to inhibit and eliminate SARS-CoV-2 in lab-grown cell cultures within 48 hours. Ivermectin shows promise as potential COVID-19 therapy. However, researchers stress the need for further testing and clinical trials in humans to confirm the effectiveness of the drug and appropriate dosage levels.
Source: Monash University
Monash scientists have shown that an anti-parasitic drug already available around the world can kill the virus within 48 hours.
Scientists from the Biomedicine Discovery Institute (BDI) showed that a single dose of the drug, Ivermectin, could stop the SARS-CoV-2 virus growing in cell culture.
This Monash University-led collaborative study was published in Antiviral Research, a peer-reviewed medical journal Antiviral Research.
Whilst shown to be effective in the lab environment, Ivermectin cannot be used in humans for COVID-19 until further testing and clinical trials have been completed to confirm the effectiveness of the drug at levels safe for human dosing. The potential use of Ivermectin to combat COVID-19 remains unproven, and depends on funding to progress the work into the next stages.
Image Credit: Amanda Scott/Alias/Envato
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