Could a drug given to dogs to treat cancer fight Covid?

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Drug given to dogs to treat their cancer could be used to thwart Covid, scientists say.

Masitinib has been used in dogs for over a decade, but is not yet approved for humans.

Academics already believe it may have potential in treating skin cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, asthma and multiple sclerosis.

But now researchers at the University of Chicago are hoping it might offer hope in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic as well.

Laboratory tests of masitinib – which costs just £ 2 a pill – have shown that it stops the virus from replicating, which ultimately causes the disease.

Studies have shown that it works just as well against variants and other similar viruses that can make humans sick.

The trial is not yet at the stage of administering the drug to Covid patients, but the smallest dose of the drug given to dogs costs just £ 2

Medicines proven to be effective in the fight against Covid

Budesonide

Budesonide is a drug most often taken by inhaler to treat asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

A study from the University of Oxford found in April that in two weeks, 32% of people recovered from Covid by taking the drug through an inhaler, compared to 22% without.

Budesonide is a corticosteroid, which means it reduces swelling inside the body and helps control immune responses.

In the lungs, swelling can make it difficult to breathe and cause coughing. Budesonide can open the airways to relieve these symptoms.

It costs around £ 15 for an inhaler and is available on the NHS.

Dexamethasone

Dexamethasone was the first drug identified as reducing the death rate in hospitalized patients with Covid.

A trial by the RECOVERY group found that dexamethasone, an inexpensive steroid, can prevent death in one in eight ventilated coronavirus patients and one in 25 patients on life support.

The steroid prevents the release of substances in the body that cause inflammation, which makes it difficult to breathe in Covid patients.

The drug is typically used to treat ulcerative colitis, arthritis, and certain types of cancer.

It is given as an injection or tablet daily and costs £ 5 per patient and is available on the NHS.

Tocilizumab

A RECOVERY trial found that the arthritis drug tocilizumab reduced the risk of death by an additional four percent, in addition to the 20 to 35 percent reduction given by dexamethasone.

A study from the University of Oxford and the NHS found that the arthritis drug tocilizumab halved the risk of dying from Covid when taken with dexamethasone.

This means that an additional life could be saved for 25 people receiving the drug.

It was also found to cut hospital time by five days.

The anti-inflammatory drug is generally used to treat rheumatoid arthritis and similar conditions.

In Covid patients, it prevents a reaction in the lungs and airways that leads to breathing problems.

It is given to patients by injection into the veins and lasts for four weeks at a time.

A typical dose of 480 mg costs £ 614.40 and is available on the NHS.

But the trials have not been performed on humans, with the claims being based solely on testing of the drug in mice and cell cultures.

The team are now planning human trials, in the hopes that it will be proven to work – and they are confident it will.

Professor Savas Tay, who led the research, said: “Inhibitors of the main SARS-CoV-2 protease, like masitinib, could be a potential new way to treat Covid patients, especially in the early stages. disease

“Covid will likely be with us for many years to come and new coronaviruses will continue to emerge.

“Finding existing drugs that have antiviral properties can be an essential part of the treatment of these diseases.”

Dr Nir Drayman, who co-authored the article, said: “Masitinib has the potential to be an effective antiviral now, especially when a person is first infected and the antiviral properties of the drug will have the greatest effect. “

“This is not the first outbreak of the novel coronavirus, and it will not be the last. In addition to vaccines, we need to have new treatments to help those who are infected.

Clinical trials for other diseases have shown that the drug, branded Masivet and manufactured by the French company AB Sciences, is safe for humans.

But it can cause side effects such as diarrhea, vomiting, swelling of the ankles, feet and legs, and increase the risk of heart disease.

The smallest dose of medicine given to dogs costs around £ 2. It’s unclear how much humans would need, if it was proven to work.

Experts at the University of Chicago searched a list of nearly 2,000 drugs known to be safe for humans.

All of the drugs they studied can keep cells from getting infected with a separate coronavirus called OC43, which causes a common cold.

They tested the SARS-CoV-2 drugs to determine that it might work against the virus that is causing the pandemic.

Masitinib was found to be the most potent, according to the results of the study published yesterday in the journal Science.

Further tests found that it reduced the viral load – the amount of virus an infected individual has – in mice by 99%.

Experts said the drug worked equally well on Kent ‘Alpha’, South African ‘Beta’ and Brazil ‘Gamma’ variants.

Researchers said it may also be effective against different types of coronaviruses and picornaviruses, including hepatitis A, polio, and viruses that cause colds.

It works by binding to an enzyme found in coronaviruses called 3CL and preventing it from working. The enzyme allows them to replicate inside cells.

Since the start of the Covid pandemic, scientists have been scrambling to find effective treatments.

So far, the steroid dexamethasone and the arthritis drug tocilizumab have been proven to work.

Dexamethasone is available by prescription from the NHS and costs £ 6 for 28 x 500g tablets. Tocilizumab can also be prescribed on the NHS in some cases, and costs £ 913 per 1ml injection.

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