411
Although the infection rate of dopamine neurons is not as high as the lung cells that are the primary target of the virus, even a small population of infected cells can potentially have serious consequences for the central nervous system.
The researchers tested drugs already on the market to treat various diseases to find those that either prevent SARS-CoV-2 infection or rescue infected dopamine neurons from progressing to a senile phenotype. The screening identified three drugs that block SARS-CoV-2 infection, thereby preventing aging of dopamine cells: riluzole (treats Lou Gehrig’s disease), metformin (treats diabetes), and imatinib (treats cancer).
