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No small matter: a perspective on nanotechnology-enabled solutions to fight COVID-19

Authors :
Georgia Wilson, Jones
Marco P, Monopoli
Luisa, Campagnolo
Antonio, Pietroiusti
Lang, Tran
Bengt, Fadeel
Source :
Nanomedicine
Publication Year :
2020
Publisher :
Future Medicine Ltd, 2020.

Abstract

There is an urgent need for safe and effective approaches to combat COVID-19. Here, we asked whether lessons learned from nanotoxicology and nanomedicine could shed light on the current pandemic. SARS-CoV-2, the causative agent, may trigger a mild, self-limiting disease with respiratory symptoms, but patients may also succumb to a life-threatening systemic disease. The host response to the virus is equally complex and studies are now beginning to unravel the immunological correlates of COVID-19. Nanotechnology can be applied for the delivery of antiviral drugs or other repurposed drugs. Moreover, recent work has shown that synthetic nanoparticles wrapped with host-derived cellular membranes may prevent virus infection. We posit that nanoparticles decorated with ACE2, the receptor for SARS-CoV-2, could be exploited as decoys to intercept the virus before it infects cells in the respiratory tract. However, close attention should be paid to biocompatibility before such nano-decoys are deployed in the clinic.

Details

Language :
English
ISSN :
17486963 and 17435889
Database :
OpenAIRE
Journal :
Nanomedicine
Accession number :
edsair.pmid.dedup....af852451ebd8ed3273f4458ff52181ea