Abstract
A new clinical study from researchers at the Center for Bioengineering at Hebrew University of Jerusalem, suggests that prescribing the drug fenofibrate to COVID-19 patients significantly reduced the buildup of fats in the lungs, which also reduced damage to the organ caused by the disease.
The study by Prof. Yaakov Nahmias, director of the Center for Bioengineering at Hebrew University Jerusalem, showed promising early data from 1,500 Israel-based COVID-19 patients. The results spurred the launch of clinical trials, to be conducted at Barzilai Hospital in Ashkelon, Israel, as well as clinical centers in the U.S., South America, and Europe.
“We showed that the human lungs responded to the SARS-CoV-2 virus by completely changing their metabolism, causing a major buildup of fats in lung cells. Our findings show that this unhealthy fat buildup is a critical factor in COVID-19 patient's deterioration. Patients taking fibrates that work directly to breakdown fats recovered fast from the disease, while those taking medications that build fats like thiazolidinediones, showed greater lung damage and mortality,” Nahmias said.
The research on fenofibrate was prompted by research by Nahmias showing how the SARS-CoV-2 virus inhibited the effective breakdown of fat within the lungs of patients. He identified the drug, which was originally designed to address high levels of triglycerides (fats) in the blood, as a potential treatment to this deficiency in COVID-19 patients.
The results demonstrated that patients who were taking the drugs to speed up the breakdown of fats were recovering from lung infections caused by COVID-19 in a matter of days—with no mortality among these patients.
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