The potential application of the traditional chinese herb Exocarpium citri grandis in the prevention and treatment of COVID-19

ABSTRACT

Huajuhong (Exocarpium Citri grandis, ECG) is a traditional Chinese herbal medicine and has been used for the treatment of respiratory diseases for hundreds of years. Recently, ECG has been listed in a traditional Chinese medicine formula in the Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (sixth edition) in China. To date, the effect and mechanism of ECG against respiratory diseases have not been systematically reviewed. In this paper, the researchers summarized the effects of ECG and its pharmacologically active compound naringin in functioning as an antitussive and expectorant, improving lung function, alleviating acute lung injury, attenuating pulmonary fibrosis, and enhancing antiviral immune response, so as to provide a reference for its clinical application in the prevention and treatment of multiple respiratory diseases, including coronavirus disease 2019.