ABSTRACT
Background: The presence of diabetes mellitus (DM) among COVID-19 patients is associated with increased hospitalization, morbidity, and mortality. Evidence has shown that hyperglycemia potentiates SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2) infection and plays a central role in severe COVID-19 and diabetes comorbidity. In this review, we explore the therapeutic potentials of herbal medications and natural products in the management of COVID-19 and DM comorbidity and the challenges associated with the preexisting or concurrent use of these substances. Methods: Research papers that were published from January 2016 to December 2021 were retrieved from PubMed, ScienceDirect, and Google Scholar databases. Papers reporting clinical evidence of antidiabetic activities and any available evidence of the anti-COVID-19 potential of ten selected natural products were retrieved and analyzed for discussion in this review. Results: A total of 548 papers (73 clinical trials on the antidiabetic activities of the selected natural products and 475 research and review articles on their anti-COVID-19 potential) were retrieved from the literature search for further analysis. A total of 517 articles (reviews and less relevant research papers) were excluded. A cumulative sum of thirty-one (31) research papers (20 clinical trials and 10 others) met the criteria and have been discussed in this review. Conclusion: The findings of this review suggest that phenolic compounds are the most promising phytochemicals in the management of COVID-19 and DM comorbidity. Curcumin and propolis have shown substantial evidence against COVID-19 and DM in humans and are thus, considered the best potential therapeutic options.
ABSTRACT
The novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) was declared a pandemic by the WHO on 19 March 2020. This pandemic is associated with markedly elevated blood glucose levels and a remarkable degree of insulin resistance, which suggests pancreatic islet ß-cell dysfunction or apoptosis and insulin's inability to dispose of glucose into cellular tissues. Diabetes is known to be one of the top pre-existing co-morbidities associated with the severity of COVID-19 along with hypertension, cardiocerebrovascular disease, advanced age, male gender, and recently obesity. This review focuses on how COVID-19 may be responsible for the accelerated development of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) as one of its acute and suspected long-term complications. These observations implicate an active role of metabolic syndrome, systemic and tissue islet renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system, redox stress, inflammation, islet fibrosis, amyloid deposition along with ß-cell dysfunction and apoptosis in those who develop T2DM. Utilizing light and electron microscopy in preclinical rodent models and human islets may help to better understand how COVID-19 accelerates islet and ß-cell injury and remodeling to result in the long-term complications of T2DM.