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Table 1 Old and new drugs tested or used in the oncological setting and potentially useful in COVID-19 therapy

From: Drug repurposing against COVID-19: focus on anticancer agents

Drug

MoA

Rapamycin and derivatives

Immunosuppressant; PI3K/mTOR inhibitor; inhibitor of viral replication

Chloroquine and derivatives

Antimalarial; broad spectrum anti-infective agent; interferent with protein post-translational processes; autophagy inhibitor; MAPK inhibitor; inhibitor of pro-inflammatory cytokines

SI113

SGK1 inhibitor

Tocilizumab

MoAb targeting IL-6R, thus contrasting cytokine storm and fibrotic degeneration

Sarilumab

MoAb targeting IL-6R, thus contrasting cytokine storm and fibrotic degeneration

Emapalumab plus anakinra

MoAb targeting IFN-γ plus IL-1R antagonist

Monalizumab

MoAb targeting NKG2A

BCG

Tuberculosis prevention; inhibition of a TGF-β1-mediated EMT

Lopinavir plus ritonavir

Viral Protease inhibitors approved for HIV treatment

Ribavirin

Viral RNA synthesis inhibitor; RdRp inhibitor

Remdesivira

Viral RNA polymerase inhibitor

  1. BCG Bacillus Calmette-Guérin, EMT Epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition; MoA Mechanism of Action; MoAb Mono- clonal antibody; RdRp RNA-dependent RNA polymerase
  2. aNot used in oncological settings