Lactoferrin as Antiviral Treatment in COVID-19 Management: Preliminary Evidence

Elena Campione, Caterina Lanna, Terenzio Cosio, Luigi Rosa, Maria Pia Conte, Federico Iacovelli, Alice Romeo, Mattia Falconi, Claudia Del Vecchio, Elisa Franchin, Maria Stella Lia, Marilena Minieri, Carlo Chiaramonte, Marco Ciotti, Marzia Nuccetelli, Alessandro Terrinoni, Ilaria Iannuzzi, Luca Coppeta, Andrea Magrini, Sergio Bernardini, Stefano Sabatini, Felice Rosapepe, Pier Luigi Bartoletti, Nicola Moricca, Andrea Di Lorenzo, Massimo Andreoni, Loredana Sarmati, Alessandro Miani, Prisco Piscitelli, Ettore Squillaci, Piera Valenti and Luca Bianchi
Additional contact information
Elena Campione: Dermatology Unit, Department of Systems Medicine, Tor Vergata University Hospital, 00133 Rome, Italy
Caterina Lanna: Dermatology Unit, Department of Systems Medicine, Tor Vergata University Hospital, 00133 Rome, Italy
Terenzio Cosio: Dermatology Unit, Department of Systems Medicine, Tor Vergata University Hospital, 00133 Rome, Italy
Luigi Rosa: Department of Public Health and Infectious Diseases, University of Rome “La Sapienza”, 00185 Rome, Italy
Maria Pia Conte: Department of Public Health and Infectious Diseases, University of Rome “La Sapienza”, 00185 Rome, Italy
Federico Iacovelli: Structural Bioinformatics Group, Department of Biology, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, 00133 Rome, Italy
Alice Romeo: Structural Bioinformatics Group, Department of Biology, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, 00133 Rome, Italy
Mattia Falconi: Structural Bioinformatics Group, Department of Biology, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, 00133 Rome, Italy
Claudia Del Vecchio: Department of Molecular Medicine, University of Padova, 35122 Padova, Italy
Elisa Franchin: Department of Molecular Medicine, University of Padova, 35122 Padova, Italy
Maria Stella Lia: Department of Experimental Medicine, Tor Vergata University Hospital, 00133 Rome, Italy
Marilena Minieri: Department of Experimental Medicine, Tor Vergata University Hospital, 00133 Rome, Italy
Carlo Chiaramonte: Department of Statistics, University of Rome Tor Vergata, 00133 Rome, Italy
Marco Ciotti: Virology Unit, Tor Vergata University Hospital, 00133 Rome, Italy
Marzia Nuccetelli: Laboratory Medicine, Department of Experimental Medicine and Surgery, Tor Vergata University Hospital, 00133 Rome, Italy
Alessandro Terrinoni: Department of Experimental Medicine, Tor Vergata University Hospital, 00133 Rome, Italy
Ilaria Iannuzzi: Occupational Medicine Department, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, 00133 Rome, Italy
Luca Coppeta: Occupational Medicine Department, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, 00133 Rome, Italy
Andrea Magrini: Occupational Medicine Department, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, 00133 Rome, Italy
Sergio Bernardini: Laboratory Medicine, Department of Experimental Medicine and Surgery, Tor Vergata University Hospital, 00133 Rome, Italy
Stefano Sabatini: Villa dei Pini Hospital, 00042 Anzio, Italy
Felice Rosapepe: Pineta Grande Hospital, 81030 Caserta, Italy
Pier Luigi Bartoletti: Fimmg Provincial, 00144 Rome, Italy
Nicola Moricca: Villa dei Pini Hospital, 00042 Anzio, Italy
Andrea Di Lorenzo: Infectious Disease Unit, Tor Vergata University Hospital, 00133 Rome, Italy
Massimo Andreoni: Infectious Disease Unit, Tor Vergata University Hospital, 00133 Rome, Italy
Loredana Sarmati: Infectious Disease Unit, Tor Vergata University Hospital, 00133 Rome, Italy
Alessandro Miani: Department of Environmental Sciences and Policy, University of Milan, 20133 Milan, Italy
Prisco Piscitelli: UNESCO Chair on Health Education and Sustainable Development, University of Naples Federico II, 80131 Naples, Italy
Ettore Squillaci: Department of Diagnostic and Molecular Imaging, Radiation Therapy and Interventional Radiology, University Hospital Tor Vergata, 00133 Rome, Italy
Piera Valenti: Department of Public Health and Infectious Diseases, University of Rome “La Sapienza”, 00185 Rome, Italy
Luca Bianchi: Dermatology Unit, Department of Systems Medicine, Tor Vergata University Hospital, 00133 Rome, Italy

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 20, 1-15

Abstract: Lactoferrin (Lf), a multifunctional cationic glycoprotein synthesized by exocrine glands and neutrophils, possesses an in vitro antiviral activity against SARS-CoV-2. Thus, we conducted an in vivo preliminary study to investigate the antiviral effect of oral and intranasal liposomal bovine Lf (bLf) in asymptomatic and mild-to-moderate COVID-19 patients. From April 2020 to June 2020, a total of 92 mild-to-moderate (67/92) and asymptomatic (25/92) COVID-19 patients were recruited and divided into three groups. Thirty-two patients (14 hospitalized and 18 in home-based isolation) received only oral and intranasal liposomal bLf; 32 hospitalized patients were treated only with standard of care (SOC) treatment; and 28, in home-based isolation, did not take any medication. Furthermore, 32 COVID-19 negative, untreated, healthy subjects were added for ancillary analysis. Liposomal bLf-treated COVID-19 patients obtained an earlier and significant ( p < 0.0001) SARS-CoV-2 RNA negative conversion compared to the SOC-treated and untreated COVID-19 patients (14.25 vs. 27.13 vs. 32.61 days, respectively). Liposomal bLf-treated COVID-19 patients showed fast clinical symptoms recovery compared to the SOC-treated COVID-19 patients. In bLf-treated patients, a significant decrease in serum ferritin, IL-6, and D-dimers levels was observed. No adverse events were reported. These observations led us to speculate a potential role of bLf in the management of mild-to-moderate and asymptomatic COVID-19 patients.

Keywords: bovine lactoferrin; liposomal bovine lactoferrin; COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; IL-6; ferritin; D-dimers (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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