Nikhil Prasad Fact checked by:Thailand Medical News Team Sep 20, 2025 2 hours, 33 minutes ago
Medical News: A Familiar Medicine with Surprising Potential
A group of international researchers has uncovered that chlorpheniramine maleate, a common antihistamine often used for allergies and colds, could play an unexpected role in fighting COVID-19. The study was led by scientists from the University of Sadat City in Egypt, the National Research Centre in Egypt, Nova Southeastern University in the USA, Larkin University in the USA, and Dr. Ferrer Biopharma in Florida. This
Medical News report explores how this affordable and widely available drug might help tackle the virus behind the global pandemic.
Old Cheap Allergy Drug Found to Attack COVID-19 in Multiple Ways
How the Study Was Conducted
The team carried out laboratory experiments using Vero E6 cells, a standard cell model for virus testing. They tested how the drug behaved in three critical phases of the viral life cycle: when the virus tries to attach to cells, when it attempts to replicate inside them, and whether the drug can directly kill the virus before it infects cells. The results showed that chlorpheniramine maleate worked at all three stages, interfering with virus entry, blocking replication, and even displaying direct virus-killing activity
Docking into the Virus Machinery
Beyond cell experiments, the researchers also used advanced computer modeling to see how the drug interacts with the virus on a molecular level. Their simulations revealed that chlorpheniramine maleate could bind to several key viral proteins, including the spike protein, the main protease, and the RNA polymerase enzyme. These are crucial for the virus to infect cells and multiply. Interestingly, the drug formed strong hydrophobic interactions and even hydrogen bonds at some binding sites, showing it can attach firmly and disrupt viral processes.
Comparing with Known COVID-19 Treatments
While current COVID-19 treatments such as Paxlovid and remdesivir target the virus in single ways, chlorpheniramine maleate appeared to work in multiple modes at once. The drug also showed better “ligand efficiency” compared to remdesivir, meaning it binds more effectively to targets relative to its size. Another advantage is that it can be taken orally or through the nose, making it simpler for widespread use. Previous small-scale clinical trials have even suggested that intranasal use of the drug helped patients recover faster and reduced the need for hospitalization.
What This Could Mean for the Future
The findings highlight chlorpheniramine maleate as a strong candidate for further study as a multitarget antiviral. If larger trials confirm these benefits, it could become a cost-effective and easily accessible option worldwide. Since it is already widely available and considered safe for allergy treatment, it may offer a faster pathway for repurposing than entirely new drugs. However, scientists caution that the current evidence comes mainly from lab studies, and more human trials are needed to confirm its real-world effectiveness.
&
lt;strong>Conclusion
This discovery shows that sometimes the answers to new health threats may come from old and familiar medicines. Chlorpheniramine maleate’s ability to block virus entry, stop replication, and directly destroy SARS-CoV-2 makes it an exciting prospect for COVID-19 treatment. If confirmed through large-scale clinical studies, it could provide a cheap, widely available, and multipurpose weapon not only against COVID-19 but also other respiratory viruses.
The study findings were published in the peer reviewed journal: Cureus.
https://www.cureus.com/articles/399658-chlorpheniramine-maleate-displaying-multiple-modes-of-antiviral-action-against-sars-cov-2-an-initial-mechanistic-study#!/
For the latest COVID-19 News, keep on logging to Thailand
Medical News.
Read Also:
https://www.thailandmedical.news/news/intranasal-chlorpheniramine-as-a-potential-solution-for-long-covid-symptoms
https://www.thailandmedical.news/news/covid-19-drugs-spanish-researchers-find-that-early-treatment-with-antihistamines-like-cetirizine-can-reduce-risk-of-covid-19-hospitalization
https://www.thailandmedical.news/news/chronic-antihistamine-use-linked-to-lower-risk-of-covid-19-severity-and-covid-19-mortality
Share
Tweet
Share
