Recent publications focus on coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), a disease caused
by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), which has gravely
impacted the entire world. It is an enveloped RNA virus arising from the genus betacoronavirus.[1] Owing to the lack of any previous treatment modalities available for COVID-19, clinical
and health care experts have resorted to the use of drugs known to be effective against
other viral fevers. This emergence of drug repurposing has arisen for several reasons,
which can be attributed to the slow pace of new drug discovery along with high-cost
involvement.[2]
[3] Examples of such repurposed drugs include hydroxychloroquine, arbidol, remdesivir,
favipiravir, lopinavir, and ritonavir, and these have now been selected for further
testing as potential treatment candidates.[4] However, clinical trials on repurposed drugs for the treatment of COVID-19 have
not been entirely successful, though they are being used in several countries despite
having moderate to severe adverse effects.[5]
[6] A critical flaw in such trials is their study design, which is compromised by the
fact that these are not double-blind studies and also have a low sample size; however,
the scientific rationale given for conducting such trials is to balance scientific
rigor against speed.[7]
Currently, the worldwide acceptance rate and the use of homeopathy are increasing.
Homeopathic medicines have shown promising results for epidemic diseases such as influenza,
dengue, and Japanese encephalitis[8]
[9]
[10]; however, homeopathy is still viewed critically by sceptics for not following the
gold standard of research.[11] Thus, during such unprecedented times, as the scientific world is moving forward
using modified and less stringent protocols to study the efficacy of repurposed drugs,
homeopathy can also take an initiative to showcase its scientific potential for the
treatment of COVID-19.
With a hope to quickly single out homeopathic candidate medicines for COVID-19, we
can adopt an approach to screen the available medicines that are in use for treating
other viral diseases. During the Ebola virus outbreak, for example, the WHO gave ethical
consideration to the use of unregistered intervention for Ebola viral disease: it
mentions “Compassionate use is justified as an exceptional emergency measure”.[12] The contemporary outbreak of COVID-19 is a pandemic and it deserves interim intervention
from other therapeutic approaches such as homeopathy to support ailing people as well
as to provide prophylaxis options for health care workers. Since the development of
specific treatments and vaccines is still underway and might take up to 12 to 18 months
to achieve fruition,[7] homeopathy can offer support along with conventional drugs and clinical management.
Due to the lack of time, we the homeopathy community can collect available data about
potential drug targets based upon the source material of homeopathic medicines and
use those selected for repurposing in COVID-19 treatment. There are several candidates
that can be targeted to inhibit the entry of SARS-CoV-2 and its subsequent multiplication
in the human body.[13] Potential drug targets that have been identified by science include angiotensin-converting
enzyme 2 (ACE-2) receptor and protease inhibitors.[14]
[15] Homeopathic medicines such as Bryonia alba,[16] Calendula,[17]
[18] Passiflora incarnata,[19] and Zingiber officinale,[20] are in use for several other maladies. Based on the properties of their source materials,
these medicines might prove to be potential inhibitors of ribosome inactivating protein,
proteases, and ACE-2, and hence may be worth investigating for the treatment of COVID-19.
