Minocycline and Japanese Herbal Medicine May Offer Hope for Long COVID and Acute Infections
Nikhil Prasad Fact checked by:Thailand Medical News Team Jul 17, 2025 8 hours, 22 minutes ago
Thailand Medical News: Researchers from the JCHO Hokkaido Hospital in Sapporo, Japan are proposing a promising new combination therapy using an old antibiotic—minocycline—and two traditional Japanese herbal formulations, known as Kampo medicine, to fight both COVID-19 and long COVID.
Minocycline and Japanese Herbal Medicine May Offer Hope for Long COVID and Acute Infections
COVID-19 continues to affect millions globally despite the availability of antiviral medications introduced by the American FDA such as remdesivir, paxlovid and molnupiravir. Many of these drugs are costly, toxic and their efficacy is questionable. Furthermore they have been proven to be less effective in addressing lingering symptoms known as long COVID, which includes fatigue, brain fog, depression, and insomnia. This
Thailand Medical News report highlights a new potential treatment that is both affordable and based on widely available compounds—minocycline and Kampo medicine.
A Dual Strategy with Modern and Traditional Therapies
Minocycline is a type of tetracycline antibiotic that has been used for decades. It’s not only effective against certain bacterial infections but also known for its anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective effects. This cheap generic antibiotic is now gaining attention for its antiviral properties and its ability to cross the blood-brain-barrier easily.
The study points out that minocycline helps suppress neuroinflammation by reducing the activity of microglia—the brain’s immune cells—which are believed to play a role in the development of long COVID. Previous trials showed that patients treated with minocycline experienced significant improvements in fatigue, unrefreshing sleep, and cognitive symptoms over a six-week period.
Kampo medicine, a branch of traditional Japanese medicine, includes herbal formulas such as Saiko-keishi-to (SKT) and Kami-kihi-to (KKT). These plant-based blends contain ingredients like Ziziphus jujuba, Bupleurum root, Glycyrrhiza (licorice), ginseng, and ginger. Many of these herbs have demonstrated antiviral and anti-inflammatory effects in both laboratory and computational studies.
For example, saikosaponin, derived from Bupleurum root, has shown the ability to stop viruses from entering cells and disrupt their replication. Glycyrrhizin from licorice has been noted to help prevent cytokine storms, which are dangerous immune overreactions triggered by COVID-19. Ginseng helps reduce inflammation and viral replication, while other ingredients like Poria and Angelicae contribute to better sleep and emotional wellbeing—an important benefit for those dealing with long COVID.
Early Case Reports Show Encouraging Results
According to the findings, multiple small studies and case reports have already demonstrated that combining minocycline with Kampo medicine offers therapeutic benefits in both the acute and recovery phases of COVID-19. Patients receiving this dual therapy reported better recovery times and improvement in
long COVID symptoms.
The combination therapy is believed to work due to the synergistic effects of both drug types—each attacking the virus and inflammation through different biological pathways. However, while the results are promising, the researchers emphasize the urgent need for larger, controlled clinical trials to determine optimal dosages, duration, and safety before widespread use.
The study’s conclusions suggest that this combined approach of using minocycline alongside Kampo medicine offers a low-cost, readily accessible strategy to manage both active COVID-19 infections and long COVID symptoms. If validated through further research, this therapy could significantly improve quality of life for millions affected by lingering symptoms and provide an alternative where conventional drugs have fallen short.
The study findings were published on a preprint server and are currently being peer reviewed.
https://www.preprints.org/manuscript/202507.1139/v1
For the latest on COVID-19 and Long COVID, keep on logging to
Thailand Medical News.
Read Also:
https://www.thailandmedical.news/news/new-approach-using-traditional-japanese-medicine-and-minocycline-for-influenza-treatment
https://www.thailandmedical.news/news/minocycline-helps-reduce-staphylococcus-aureus-induced-brain-inflammation-and-anxiety
https://www.thailandmedical.news/news/breaking-china-starts-using-the-antibiotic-minocycline-that-also-has-antiviral-properties-to-treat-covid-19
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