Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39846709›Full record

ArticleInfectious disease reports2025

Early Use of Liraglutide for the Treatment of Acute COVID-19 Infection: An Open-Label Single-Center Phase II Safety Study with Biomarker Profiling.

Eloara V M Ferreira, Rudolf K F Oliveira, Reinaldo Salomao, Milena K C Brunialti, Martyella B A Cardoso, Chien-Nien Chen, Lan Zhao, Colm McCabe

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Infectious disease reports, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
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

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

Eloara V M FerreiraDivision of Respiratory Diseases, Department of Medicine, Federal University of São Paulo (UNIFESP), São Paulo 04038-901, Brazil.ORCID 0000-0002-3291-6473
Rudolf K F OliveiraDivision of Respiratory Diseases, Department of Medicine, Federal University of São Paulo (UNIFESP), São Paulo 04038-901, Brazil.ORCID 0000-0002-2252-8119
Reinaldo SalomaoDivision of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Federal University of São Paulo (UNIFESP), São Paulo 04038-901, Brazil.ORCID 0000-0003-1149-4598
Milena K C BrunialtiDivision of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Federal University of São Paulo (UNIFESP), São Paulo 04038-901, Brazil.ORCID 0000-0003-2874-520X
Martyella B A CardosoDivision of Respiratory Diseases, Department of Medicine, Federal University of São Paulo (UNIFESP), São Paulo 04038-901, Brazil.
Chien-Nien ChenDepartment of Experimental Medicine, Hammersmith Campus, Imperial College, London SW7 2BX, UK.
Lan ZhaoDepartment of Experimental Medicine, Hammersmith Campus, Imperial College, London SW7 2BX, UK.
Colm McCabeRoyal Brompton Hospital, Part of GSTT NHS Foundation Trust, London SW3 6NP, UK.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundGlucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) agonists are an existing treatment option for patients with insulin-resistant states, which elicit further pleiotropic effects related to immune cell recruitment and vascular inflammation. GLP-1 agonists downregulate the cluster of differentiation 147 (CD147) receptor, one of several receptors for the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein that mediate viral infection of host cells.

methodsWe conducted an open-label prospective safety and tolerability study including biomarker responses of the GLP-1 agonist Liraglutide, administered for 5 days as an add-on therapy to the standard of care within 48 h of presentation in a cohort of 13 patients hospitalized with COVID-19 pneumonia. Biomarker responses were compared in patients admitted to critical care and those not requiring critical care admission (non-critical group).

resultsLiraglutide (0.6 mg, subcutaneously) was well tolerated by all patients and all patients were alive 30 days after diagnosis. Plasma soluble CD147 levels were reduced in the non-critical patient group at day 5 in contrast to critical care-treated patients, who demonstrated an increase in soluble CD147 levels between day 0 and day 5. Patients with milder COVID-19 pneumonia severity also demonstrated improvement in echocardiographic parameters of right and left ventricular function, reduction in plasma Troponin levels, increased CD147 expression on T lymphocytes, and reduction in plasma IL-8.

conclusionsThis first-in-disease use of the GLP-1 agonist Liraglutide demonstrates its safety and tolerability in an unselected cohort of patients hospitalized with COVID-19 pneumonia across a range of clinical severities.

Indexed as

CD147COVID-19GLP-1 agonist

Identifiers

PMID39846709
PMCPMC11755651

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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.