Anti-aging drugs, presumably, can significantly reduce the risk of death from COVID-19 in the elderly. This was demonstrated by American scientists from the University of Minnesota and the Mao Clinic, which revealed the effectiveness of senolithics in reducing the mortality of old mice when betosconavirus infecting, which is closely related to SARS-COV-2. Details about the potential tool, saving from heavy complications, published in the SCIENCE journal.
According to the hypothesis of the authors of the work, one of the main roles in the development of complications at COVID-19 is played by senile cells (SNC), a significant part of which distinguishes inflammatory factors, reinforcing blood clotting substances and other connections – all together it is called a secretory phenotype associated with with aging (or sasp). SASP attracts immune cells that purify the body from damaged cells, however, despite this, with age SNC accumulate, which disrupts the organism homeostasis and increases the predisposition to many diseases.
In the course of the experiment, scientists were subjected to laboratory mice exposure to conventional pathogens, including beta-coronavirus infection, which brought to death almost one percent of old rodents in less than two weeks. The analysis showed that these animals had high levels of inflammatory markers in contrast to young mice, the survival rate of which was 89 percent. In the serum of the old mice, researchers discovered an increased content of inflammatory cytokines, which highlighted SNC.
Beta-Coronavirus caused necrotic liver damage in old rodents (young, as a rule, recovered), and it was this pathogen that remained active to 11 days of infection, when most mice died. However, the reception of the SNC programmable cell death or apoptosis (it applies to them, for example, phylamonoid physometh, contained in fruits and vegetables) helped reduce mortality. The drug was injected with mice through the gastric probe at a dose of 20 milligrams per kilogram of weight by 3.4, 5 and 10,11,12 day after exposure to the pathogen. As a result, the survival rate among the elderly males was 64 percent, and among females – 22 percent.
Currently, a major study on the testing of physometh in elderly patients with COVID-19 in the nursing homes has been launched. In addition, as the authors of the article are written, during the Pandemic of COVID-19, as well as future global epidemics, to curb the cytokine storm and an increase in the survival of older people, SASP inhibitors can be used, including rapalki (Rapamycin analogues), glucocorticoids and metformin.