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Review
. 2021 Feb 22:8:617659.
doi: 10.3389/fmed.2021.617659. eCollection 2021.

Understanding COVID-19 in Wuhan From the Perspective of Cold-Dampness: Clinical Evidences and Mechanisms

Yujiao Zheng  1   2 , De Jin  1 , Jiaran Lin  2 , Yuehong Zhang  1 , Jiaxing Tian  1 , Fengmei Lian  1 , Xiaolin Tong  1
Affiliations
Review

Understanding COVID-19 in Wuhan From the Perspective of Cold-Dampness: Clinical Evidences and Mechanisms

Yujiao Zheng et al. Front Med (Lausanne). .

Abstract

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has played a significant role in the treatment of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Wuhan City. During the epidemic, Academician Tong Xiaolin suggested a close association of COVID-19 with cold-dampness, an etiological factor in TCM, by summarizing the characteristics of the COVID-19 patients in Wuhan. and the theory of Cold-dampness Plague was proposed. Based on the Cold-dampness Plague theory, a series of TCM drugs, such as Huoxiang Zhengqi Dropping Pills, Lianhua Qingwen Granules Hanshiyi Formula, and Tongzhi Granule were developed for the different stages, namely mild, moderate, severe, recovery, of the COVID-19. In addition, clinical evidences were obtained through randomized clinical trials or retrospective cohort studies. The Anti-SARS-CoV-2 mechanism of the TCM prescriptions were then summarized from the four aspects: targeting the ACE2 and 3CLPro, targeting cytokines, targeting acute immune responses to SARS-CoV-2, and targeting pulmonary fibrosis. Despite the clinical efficacy and therapeutic pharmacology speculation, more studies such as large-scale randomized clinical trials, cell and animal experiments are needed to further verify the theory of the Cold-dampness Plague in COVID-19 patients.

Keywords: COVID-19; cold-dampness; cold-dampness plague theory; infectious disease; traditional Chinese medicine.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The schematic diagram illustrating proposed activity model of Herbal medicine in targeting 3C-like Proteinase (3CLPro) and Angiotensin converting enzyme two (ACE2). Green nodes represent Hanshiyi Formula (HSYF). Yellow nodes represent Huoxiang Zhengqi Dropping Pills (HZDP) and Lianhua Qingwen Granules (LQG).
Figure 2
Figure 2
The schematic diagram illustrating proposed activity model of Herbal medicine in targeting cytokine. Green node represents Hanshiyi Formula (HSYF). Yellow node represents Huoxiang Zhengqi Dropping Pills (HZDP) and red node represents Lianhua Qingwen Granules (LQG).
Figure 3
Figure 3
The schematic diagram illustrating proposed activity model of Herbal medicine in targeting acute immune responses to SARS-CoV-2. Red node represents Lianhua Qingwen Granules (LQG).
Figure 4
Figure 4
Heat map of Molecular docking. Molecular models of the binding of quercetin (MOL0000098), kaempferol (MOL000422), luteolin (MOL000006) with TOP, MMP2, MMP9, IFNG, SELE, PLAU, VEGFA, HMOX1, F2, TNF, TP53, PPARG, PIK3CG, IL6, PTGS2, HSP90AB1, and EGFR, respectively.
Figure 5
Figure 5
The schematic diagram illustrating proposed activity model of Tongzhi Granule (TZG) in pulmonary fibrosis.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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