Indian-American scientist identifies four possible treatments for COVID-19

An Indian-American scientist-led team from the University of Missouri has identified four antiviral drugs, including remdesivir, to be effective in the treatment of COVID-19.

The study was published in the journal Pathogens.

Kamlendra Singh, an associate professor in the College of Veterinary Medicine, and his team used computer-aided drug design to examine the effectiveness of remdesivir, 5-fluorouracil, ribavirin and favipiravir in inhibiting the replication of the novel coronavirus causing COVID-19 -- or blocking, the coronavirus' RNA proteins from making genomic copies of the virus.

These antiviral drugs, if proven effective, have some limitations. The coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) that causes COVID-19, like all viruses, can mutate and develop resistance to antiviral drugs. Therefore, further testing in a laboratory setting and in patients is needed to better evaluate how the proposed treatments interact with the virus' RNA polymerase.

Meanwhile, the US is planning to begin treating some of the most seriously ill COVID-19 patients with the antiviral medication Remdesivir.

As of Tuesday, confirmed cases in the country has reached 1,180,634 with 68,934 deaths, according to the tally maintained by the Johns Hopkins University.