March 18 (UPI) -- Researchers have identified a protein that may slow development of the new coronavirus in lungs and bolsters immune response, and officials in China and Japan report that a flu drug is showing promise against COVID-19 there.
As part of an American Lung Association-funded project designed to assess how large white blood cells called macrophages affect the flu virus, scientists discovered that LY6E, a protein-coding gene involved in many infectious diseases, plays a role in the body's immune response to COVID-19.
The researchers think LY6E could serve as a therapeutic "target" for drugs designed to treat the virus. The authors cautioned, however, that the findings are preliminary, and that more research is needed.
"The outbreak is happening very fast," co-author Dr. John Schoggins, an associate professor of microbiology at the University of Texas-Southwestern Medical Center, told UPI. "Basic research by its very nature moves relatively slow. Whether this natural antiviral defense protein can be leveraged in a short time remains to be seen."
In experiments performed in a laboratory setting -- and not in human subjects -- Schoggins and his colleagues found LY6E seems to impair the development of virus cells for a number of coronaviruses, including SARS, MERS and COVID-19, as well as influenza. It works to effectively prevent the viruses from entering the lungs and, thus, protects against the development of severe disease.
Further research to identify the molecular mechanism behind LY6E's effect on coronaviruses is needed before it can be studied as a potential pathway to treatment for these deadly diseases. Still, the findings are an important first step, Schoggins said.
"The next steps are to determine whether LY6E impairs the COVID-19 virus in animal models, which are just now being developed by others, or in humans," Schoggins noted. "This is an unanswered question. We also need to understand exactly how this protein inhibits the virus so we can determine whether there is a viable path to therapeutic development."
The process could take "years," he added.
"A drug based on LY6E may not be available for the current outbreak, but additional research could serve as an insurance policy so that we do have a treatment for future coronavirus outbreaks," he explained.
Meanwhile, public health officials announced Wednesday that favipiravir, an antiviral drug used in Japan to treat new strains of influenza, appears to be an effective therapy for COVID-19.
Developed by a subsidiary of Fujifilm, favipiravir yielded "encouraging" results in clinical trials in Wuhan and Shenzhen involving 340 patients, the officials told reporters.
Patients who were given the drug in Shenzhen tested negative for COVID-19 after a median of four days following their first positive test, compared with a median of 11 days for those who were not treated with the drug.
In addition, X-rays confirmed improvement in lung health in about 91 percent of the patients who were treated with favipiravir, compared to 62 percent of those who did not receive the drug.
Doctors in Japan are reportedly using the drug in clinical trials on coronavirus patients with mild to moderate symptoms, hoping it will prevent the virus from progressing to more severe disease. However, reports suggest the drug may not be as effective in people with more severe symptoms.
