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. 2021 Dec 2;16(12):e0260958.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0260958. eCollection 2021.

Niclosamide shows strong antiviral activity in a human airway model of SARS-CoV-2 infection and a conserved potency against the Alpha (B.1.1.7), Beta (B.1.351) and Delta variant (B.1.617.2)

Anne Weiss  1   2 , Franck Touret  3 , Cecile Baronti  3 , Magali Gilles  3 , Bruno Hoen  4 , Antoine Nougairède  3 , Xavier de Lamballerie  3 , Morten O A Sommer  2   5
Affiliations

Niclosamide shows strong antiviral activity in a human airway model of SARS-CoV-2 infection and a conserved potency against the Alpha (B.1.1.7), Beta (B.1.351) and Delta variant (B.1.617.2)

Anne Weiss et al. PLoS One. .

Abstract

SARS-CoV-2 variants are emerging with potential increased transmissibility highlighting the great unmet medical need for new therapies. Niclosamide is a potent anti-SARS-CoV-2 agent that has advanced in clinical development. We validate the potent antiviral efficacy of niclosamide in a SARS-CoV-2 human airway model. Furthermore, niclosamide remains its potency against the D614G, Alpha (B.1.1.7), Beta (B.1.351), and Delta (B.1.617.2) variants. Our data further support the potent anti-SARS-CoV-2 properties of niclosamide and highlights its great potential as a therapeutic agent for COVID-19.

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Conflict of interest statement

I have read the journal’s policy and the authors of this manuscript have the following competing interests: MOAS and AW are shareholders or benefit from an employee incentive scheme in UNION therapeutics. This does not alter our adherence to PLOS ONE policies on sharing data and materials. Further, UNION had no role in study design, data collection, data analysis, data interpretation, or writing of the report. All other authors have nothing to disclose.

Figures

Fig 1
Fig 1. Antiviral efficacy of niclosamide in a trans-well model of human bronchial epithelium infected with SARS-CoV-2.
Effect of niclosamide on the infectious titer on day 2, 3 and 4 (A) and intracellular viral RNA on day 4 (B) in two donors. (C) Effect of niclosamide on relative LDH activity as measure of cytotoxicity. **** = p < 0.0001, ** = p < 0.01, * = p < 0.05; Ordinary Two-Way ANOVA (A) and Ordinary One-Way ANOVA (B, C) with Dunnett’s multiple comparison test. Raw data underlying this figure are shown in S1 Table. Nic = Niclosamide.
Fig 2
Fig 2. Effect of niclosamide on SARS-CoV-2 variants, including Alpha (B.1.1.7), Beta (B.1.351) and Delta (B.1.617.2) in VeroE6 TMPRSS2 cells.
IC = Inhibitory concentration. N = 3. Raw data underlying this figure are shown in S2 Table.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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