Chloroquine in fighting COVID-19: good, bad, or both?

Autophagy. 2020 Dec;16(12):2273-2275. doi: 10.1080/15548627.2020.1796014. Epub 2020 Jul 25.

Abstract

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has attracted worldwide attention due to its speed of progression and elevated mortality rate. Amid the rush to develop treatments, recent hopes have focused on the anti-malarial drug chloroquine or the derivative hydroxychloroquine. Here, we briefly discuss the evidence for the potential use of these drugs with regard to the current pandemic.

Keywords: COVID-19; Chloroquine; SARS-CoV-2; autophagy; clinical trial; hydroxychloroquine.

MeSH terms

  • Autophagy / drug effects
  • COVID-19 / epidemiology
  • COVID-19 / pathology
  • COVID-19 Drug Treatment*
  • Cardiovascular Diseases / chemically induced
  • Cardiovascular Diseases / epidemiology
  • China / epidemiology
  • Chloroquine / adverse effects*
  • Chloroquine / analogs & derivatives
  • Chloroquine / pharmacology
  • Chloroquine / therapeutic use*
  • Clinical Trials as Topic / statistics & numerical data
  • Drug-Related Side Effects and Adverse Reactions / epidemiology
  • Drug-Related Side Effects and Adverse Reactions / etiology
  • France / epidemiology
  • Humans
  • Hydroxychloroquine / adverse effects
  • Hydroxychloroquine / pharmacology
  • Hydroxychloroquine / therapeutic use
  • Italy / epidemiology
  • Pandemics
  • SARS-CoV-2 / drug effects*
  • SARS-CoV-2 / physiology
  • Severity of Illness Index

Substances

  • Hydroxychloroquine
  • Chloroquine