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Review
. 2020 Oct 7:11:570122.
doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2020.570122. eCollection 2020.

Immune-Boosting, Antioxidant and Anti-inflammatory Food Supplements Targeting Pathogenesis of COVID-19

M Mrityunjaya  1   2 , V Pavithra  1   2 , R Neelam  1 , P Janhavi  1   2 , P M Halami  3 , P V Ravindra  1
Affiliations
Review

Immune-Boosting, Antioxidant and Anti-inflammatory Food Supplements Targeting Pathogenesis of COVID-19

M Mrityunjaya et al. Front Immunol. .

Abstract

The COVID-19 is an acute and contagious disease characterized by pneumonia and ARDS. The disease is caused by SARS-CoV-2, which belongs to the family of Coronaviridae along with MERS-CoV and SARS-CoV-1. The virus has the positive-sense RNA as its genome encoding for ~26 proteins that work together for the virus survival, replication, and spread in the host. The virus gets transmitted through the contact of aerosol droplets from infected persons. The pathogenesis of COVID-19 is highly complex and involves suppression of host antiviral and innate immune response, induction of oxidative stress followed by hyper inflammation described as the "cytokine storm," causing the acute lung injury, tissue fibrosis, and pneumonia. Currently, several vaccines and drugs are being evaluated for their efficacy, safety, and for determination of doses for COVID-19 and this requires considerable time for their validation. Therefore, exploring the repurposing of natural compounds may provide alternatives against COVID-19. Several nutraceuticals have a proven ability of immune-boosting, antiviral, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory effects. These include Zn, vitamin D, vitamin C, curcumin, cinnamaldehyde, probiotics, selenium, lactoferrin, quercetin, etc. Grouping some of these phytonutrients in the right combination in the form of a food supplement may help to boost the immune system, prevent virus spread, preclude the disease progression to severe stage, and further suppress the hyper inflammation providing both prophylactic and therapeutic support against COVID-19.

Keywords: COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; anti-inflammation; antioxidant; food supplements; immune-boosting; pathogenesis.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Schematic representation of pathogenesis of COVID-19. SARS-CoV-2 infection involves two phases: (1) Asymptomatic carrier phase. (2) Symptomatic inflammatory phase. The black stars indicate the stage at which food supplements can counteract the pathogenesis of COVID-19. Arrow on the left indicate the progress of the infection.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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