Evidence map›Paper›PMID 33318880›Full record

ArticleScience bulletin2021

Protoporphyrin IX and verteporfin potently inhibit SARS-CoV-2 infection

Chenjian Gu, Yang Wu, Huimin Guo, Yuanfei Zhu, Wei Xu, Yuyan Wang, Yu Zhou, Zhiping Sun, Xia Cai, Yutang Li and 7 more

Open access · greenAbstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Science bulletin, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 38 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
38citing papers in PubMed
0.9field-weighted citation impact, top 15% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

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.

2 · The registry

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.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

38 citing papers in PubMed, 57 citations in OpenAlex.

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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

17 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.

Chenjian GuKey Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Department of Medical Microbiology and Parasitology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Institute of Infectious Diseases and Biosecurity, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China.
Yang WuKey Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Department of Medical Microbiology and Parasitology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Institute of Infectious Diseases and Biosecurity, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China.
Huimin GuoKey Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Department of Medical Microbiology and Parasitology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Institute of Infectious Diseases and Biosecurity, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China.
Yuanfei ZhuKey Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Department of Medical Microbiology and Parasitology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Institute of Infectious Diseases and Biosecurity, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China.
Wei XuKey Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Department of Medical Microbiology and Parasitology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Institute of Infectious Diseases and Biosecurity, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China.
Yuyan WangKey Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Department of Medical Microbiology and Parasitology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Institute of Infectious Diseases and Biosecurity, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China.
Yu ZhouCAS Key Laboratory of Molecular Virology & Immunology, Institut Pasteur of Shanghai, Chinese Academy of Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China.
Zhiping SunBSL-3 Laboratory of Fudan University, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China.
Xia CaiBSL-3 Laboratory of Fudan University, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China.
Yutang LiKey Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Department of Medical Microbiology and Parasitology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Institute of Infectious Diseases and Biosecurity, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China.
Jing LiuKey Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Department of Medical Microbiology and Parasitology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Institute of Infectious Diseases and Biosecurity, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China.
Zhong HuangCAS Key Laboratory of Molecular Virology & Immunology, Institut Pasteur of Shanghai, Chinese Academy of Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China.
Zhenghong YuanKey Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Department of Medical Microbiology and Parasitology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Institute of Infectious Diseases and Biosecurity, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China.
Rong ZhangKey Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Department of Medical Microbiology and Parasitology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Institute of Infectious Diseases and Biosecurity, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China.
Qiang DengKey Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Department of Medical Microbiology and Parasitology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Institute of Infectious Diseases and Biosecurity, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China.
Di QuKey Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Department of Medical Microbiology and Parasitology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Institute of Infectious Diseases and Biosecurity, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China.
Youhua XieKey Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Department of Medical Microbiology and Parasitology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Institute of Infectious Diseases and Biosecurity, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China.
Shanghai Medical College of Fudan University · CNInstitut Pasteur of Shanghai · CNUniversity of Chinese Academy of Sciences · CN

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The SARS-CoV-2 infection is spreading rapidly worldwide. Efficacious antiviral therapeutics against SARS-CoV-2 is urgently needed. Here, we discovered that protoporphyrin IX (PpIX) and verteporfin, two Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved drugs, completely inhibited the cytopathic effect produced by SARS-CoV-2 infection at 1.25 μmol/L and 0.31 μmol/L, respectively, and their EC50 values of reduction of viral RNA were at nanomolar concentrations. The selectivity indices of PpIX and verteporfin were 952.74 and 368.93, respectively, suggesting a broad margin of safety. Importantly, PpIX and verteporfin prevented SARS-CoV-2 infection in mice adenovirally transduced with human angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2). The compounds, sharing a porphyrin ring structure, were shown to bind viral receptor ACE2 and interfere with the interaction between ACE2 and the receptor-binding domain of viral S protein. Our study suggests that PpIX and verteporfin are potent antiviral agents against SARS-CoV-2 infection and sheds new light on developing novel chemoprophylaxis and chemotherapy against SARS-CoV-2.

Indexed as

ACE2Protoporphyrin IXSARS-CoV-2Verteporfin

Identifiers

PMID33318880
PMCPMC7724564
OpenAlexW3112990668

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.