The consolidated evidence that SARS-CoV-2 is efficiently able to interplay with heparan sulfate proteoglycans on host cell surface for primary attachment before high-affinity interaction of RBD with ACE2, provides reasonable and reinforced support for the importance of heparin usage in COVID-19. In fact, the antiviral activity of heparin may ultimately complement its well-known anticoagulant and even anti-inflammatory properties, thus generating an additional (pleiotropic) effect—besides lowering the risk of thrombosis and counteracting hyperinflammation—that may favorably influence the clinical course of SARS-CoV-2 infection, especially in the most vulnerable subjects. Notably, nasal heparin sprays are undergoing clinical trials to evaluate their potential to mitigate SARS-CoV-2 infectivity,29 and thus aid other approaches to prevent COVID-19, including vaccination efforts.
The Benefits of Heparin Use in COVID-19: Pleiotropic Antiviral Activity beyond Anticoagulant and Anti-Inflammatory Properties
Lippi, Giuseppe
;
2023-01-01
Abstract
The consolidated evidence that SARS-CoV-2 is efficiently able to interplay with heparan sulfate proteoglycans on host cell surface for primary attachment before high-affinity interaction of RBD with ACE2, provides reasonable and reinforced support for the importance of heparin usage in COVID-19. In fact, the antiviral activity of heparin may ultimately complement its well-known anticoagulant and even anti-inflammatory properties, thus generating an additional (pleiotropic) effect—besides lowering the risk of thrombosis and counteracting hyperinflammation—that may favorably influence the clinical course of SARS-CoV-2 infection, especially in the most vulnerable subjects. Notably, nasal heparin sprays are undergoing clinical trials to evaluate their potential to mitigate SARS-CoV-2 infectivity,29 and thus aid other approaches to prevent COVID-19, including vaccination efforts.
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