ArticlePloS one2014
Chloroquine is a zinc ionophore.
Article in PloS one, 2014. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT04370782 (A Randomized Study Evaluating the Safety and Efficacy of Hydroxychloroquine and Zinc in Combination With Either Azithromycin or Doxycycline for the Treatment of COVID-19 in the Outpatient Setting), which is not on this map. Cited by 121 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
A Randomized Study Evaluating the Safety and Efficacy of Hydroxychloroquine and Zinc in Combination With Either Azithromycin or Doxycycline for the Treatment of COVID-19 in the Outpatient Setting
Who cites it
121 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 238 citations in OpenAlex.
- The Role of Nutrition in COVID-19 Susceptibility and Severity of Disease: A Systematic Review.The Journal of nutrition · 2021Pooled it
- Olfactory Disturbances as Presenting Manifestation Among Egyptian Patients with COVID-19: Possible Role of Zinc.Biological trace element research · 2021Trial
- Do Zinc Supplements Enhance the Clinical Efficacy of Hydroxychloroquine?: a Randomized, Multicenter Trial.Biological trace element research · 2021Trial
- Nasal inhalation of antiviral microparticulate powders to target early infection of upper airways.Drug delivery and translational research · 2026Article
- Chloroquine inhibits artificial oocyte activation induced by ethanol or SrThe Journal of reproduction and development · 2025Article
- Endometrial zinc transporterPNAS nexus · 2025Article
- Chitosan-Zinc-Ligated Hydroxychloroquine: Molecular Docking, Synthesis, Characterization, and Trypanocidal Activity againstPolymers · 2024Article
- Antiviral and Cytoprotective Effect of Zinc (Yasad Bhasma) Based Nanoformulations Against Bovine Coronavirus.Indian journal of microbiology · 2024Article
- Metal-binding proteins and proteases in RNA viruses: unravelling functional diversity and expanding therapeutic horizons.Journal of virology · 2023Article
- Repurposing Polyether Ionophores as a New-Class of Anti-SARS-Cov-2 Agents as Adjunct Therapy.Current microbiology · 2023Review
- Synergistic Effect of Zinc-Chitosan Nanoparticles and Hydroxychloroquine to Inhibit Buffalo Coronavirus.Polymers · 2023Article
- Zinc Supplementation Associated With a Decrease in Mortality in COVID-19 Patients: A Meta-Analysis.Cureus · 2023Review
- Importance of Magnesium Status in COVID-19.Biology · 2023Review
- Chloroquine chaos and COVID-19: Smart delivery perspectives through pH sensitive polymers/micelles and ZnO nanoparticles.Arabian journal of chemistry · 2023Review
- Hypothesis: Efficacy of early treatments with some NSAIDs in COVID-19: Might it also depend on their direct and/or indirect zinc chelating ability?British journal of pharmacology · 2023Article
- Inflammation in COVID-19 and the Effects of Non-Pharmacological Interventions during the Pandemic: A Review.International journal of molecular sciences · 2022Review
- Systems biology approach reveals a common molecular basis for COVID-19 and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).European journal of medical research · 2022Article
- The Mechanisms of Zinc Action as a Potent Anti-Viral Agent: The Clinical Therapeutic Implication in COVID-19.Antioxidants (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Review
- Zinc Deficiency Induces Autophagy in HT-22 Mouse Hippocampal Neuronal Cell Line.International journal of molecular sciences · 2022Article
- Evidence of Metallic and Polyether Ionophores as Potent Therapeutic Drug Candidate in Cancer Management.Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Review
61 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
Chloroquine is an established antimalarial agent that has been recently tested in clinical trials for its anticancer activity. The favorable effect of chloroquine appears to be due to its ability to sensitize cancerous cells to chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and induce apoptosis. The present study investigated the interaction of zinc ions with chloroquine in a human ovarian cancer cell line (A2780). Chloroquine enhanced zinc uptake by A2780 cells in a concentration-dependent manner, as assayed using a fluorescent zinc probe. This enhancement was attenuated by TPEN, a high affinity metal-binding compound, indicating the specificity of the zinc uptake. Furthermore, addition of copper or iron ions had no effect on chloroquine-induced zinc uptake. Fluorescent microscopic examination of intracellular zinc distribution demonstrated that free zinc ions are more concentrated in the lysosomes after addition of chloroquine, which is consistent with previous reports showing that chloroquine inhibits lysosome function. The combination of chloroquine with zinc enhanced chloroquine's cytotoxicity and induced apoptosis in A2780 cells. Thus chloroquine is a zinc ionophore, a property that may contribute to chloroquine's anticancer activity.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.