question: Is the apilimod inhibitor effective against SARS-CoV-2?
answer: To identify therapeutics that can be repurposed as SARS-CoV-2 antivirals, a library of known drugs encompassing approximately 12,000 clinical-stage or FDA-approved small molecules were profiled. In a study the identification of 30 known drugs that inhibit viral replication was reportedd. Of these, six were characterized for cellular dose-activity relationships, and showed effective concentrations likely to be commensurate with therapeutic doses in patients. These include the PIKfyve kinase inhibitor Apilimod, cysteine protease inhibitors MDL-28170, Z LVG CHN2, VBY-825, and ONO 5334, and the CCR1 antagonist MLN-3897. Since many of these molecules have advanced into the clinic, the known pharmacological and human safety profiles of these compounds will accelerate their preclinical and clinical evaluation for COVID-19 treatment.