Can SARS-COV-2 virus be slowed down by the use of hydroxychloroquine?
Chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine are 4-aminoquinoline derivatives. These drugs are weak bases. They make our cell’s cytoplasm and intro-organelle environment basic. This basic environment can hinder virus internalization and assembly in the organelle.
In a study it is also researched that Zinc can also stall viral replication by disabling RNA dependent RNA replicase. However, our cells do not have gates for Zinc to enter into them. The researchers found that these two drugs can act as gates for zinc to enter into the cells.
Disclaimer: these are possible observations and evolving literature so far. There are no formal studies to prove the first two mechanisms. This might not be true when further studies are done.
