Mesenchymal stem cells and COVID-19: What they do and what they can do.

The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) or coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has exhausted the health systems in many countries with thousands cases diagnosed daily. The currently used treatment guideline is to manage the common symptoms like fever and cough, but doesn't target the virus itself or halts serious complications arising from this viral infection. Currently, SARS-CoV-2 exhibits many genetic modulations which have been associated with the appearance of highly contagious strains. The number of critical cases of COVID-19 increases markedly, and many of the infected people die as a result of respiratory failure and multiple organ dysfunction. The regenerative potential of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) has been extensively studied and confirmed. The impressive immunomodulation and anti-inflammatory activity of MSCs have been recognized as a golden opportunity for the treatment of COVID-19 and its associated complications. Moreover, MSCs regenerative and repairing abilities have been corroborated by many studies with positive outcomes and high recovery rates. Based on that, MSCs infusion could be an effective mechanism in managing and stemming the serious complications and multiple organ failure associated with COVID-19. In the present review, we discuss the commonly reported complications of COVID-19 viral infection and the established and anticipated role of MSCs in managing these complications.

A Minireview of the Promising Drugs and Vaccines in Pipeline for the Treatment of COVID-19 and Current Update on Clinical Trials.

The COVID-19 is affecting thousands of peoples day by day and continues to spread across the world. The present review has focused on promising repurposing drugs, including remdesivir, lopinvar/retinovar, favipiravir, hydroxychloroquine, monoclonal antibodies and vaccines against the SARS-CoV-2 infection. Besides, our review has also focused on many organizations that are in the race to develop vaccines using various approaches including DNA, RNA, viral vectors and subunit proteins against this highly contagious respiratory disease. The spike protein is being studied by scientists all over the world to develop potential vaccines. The antiviral drugs, antibodies and vaccines developed by various researchers around the world have entered clinical trials in humans. The current clinical trials for antiviral agents and vaccines with promising outcomes are being discussed. So far, four vaccines developed by the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, the Johnson and Johnson vaccine and two AstraZeneca vaccines (produced by SKBio in the Republic of Korea and Serum Institute of India) are approved by the World Health Organization for public use.

The emergence of COVID-19 as a global pandemic: Understanding the epidemiology, immune response and potential therapeutic targets of SARS-CoV-2.

An acute respiratory disease caused by a severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that surfaced in China in late 2019, continues to spread rapidly across the globe causing serious concerns. The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is declared as a public health emergency worldwide by the World Health Organization (WHO). Increasing evidences have demonstrated human-to-human transmission that primarily affects the upper respiratory tract followed by lower respiratory tract damage leading to severe pneumonia. Based on the current status, the elderly population and people with prior co-morbidities are highly susceptible to serious health effects including cytokine up-regulation and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Currently, COVID-19 research is still in the preliminary stage necessitating rigorous studies. There is no specific drug or vaccine targeting SARS-CoV-2 currently and only symptomatic treatment is being administered, but several antivirals are under active investigation. In this review, we have summarized the epidemiology, entry mechanism, immune response, and therapeutic implications, possible drug targets, their ongoing clinical trials, and put forward vital questions to offer new directions to the COVID-19 research.