Inhibition of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 Replication by Hypertonic Saline Solution in Lung and Kidney Epithelial Cells

Author(s):Show less -

Machado, Rafael R. G. ^[1] ; Glaser, Talita ^[2] ; Araujo, Danielle B. ^{[1, 3]} ; Petiz, Lyvia Lintzmaier ^[2] ; Oliveira, Danielle B. L. ^{[1, 3, 4]} ; Durigon, Giuliana S. ^[5] ; Leal, Alessandra L. ^[6] ; Pinho, Joao Renato R. ^{[3, 7, 8]} ; Ferreira, Luis C. S. ^{[1, 9]} ; Ulrich, Henning ^[2] ; Durigon, Edison L. ^{[1, 9]} ; Guzzo, Cristiane Rodrigues ^[1]

Affiliation

^[1] Univ Sao Paulo, Inst Biomed Sci, Dept Microbiol, BR-05508 Sao Paulo - Brazil

^[2] Univ Sao Paulo, Inst Chem, Dept Biochem, BR-05508 Sao Paulo - Brazil

^[3] Hosp Israelita Albert Einstein, BR-05652 Sao Paulo - Brazil

^[4] Butantan Inst, Dev & Innovat Ctr, Lab Virol, BR-05503 Sao Paulo - Brazil

^[5] Univ Sao Paulo, Med Sch Clin Hosp, BR-05508 Sao Paulo - Brazil

^[6] Gaspar Vianna Clin Hosp Fdn, BR-66083 Belem, Para - Brazil

^[7] Univ Sao Paulo, Clin Hosp, Sao Paulo Sch Med, Cent Labs Div, BR-05508 Sao Paulo - Brazil

^[8] Univ Sao Paulo, Inst Trop Med, Dept Gastroenterol, LIM 07, Sch Med, BR-05508 Sao Paulo - Brazil

^[9] Sci Platform Pasteur USP, BR-05508 Sao Paulo - Brazil

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: ACS PHARMACOLOGY & TRANSLATIONAL SCIENCE; v. 4, n. 5, p. 1514-1527, OCT 8 2021.
• Web of Science Citations: 0

Abstract

An unprecedented global health crisis has been caused by a new virus called severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). We performed experiments to test if a hypertonic saline solution was capable of inhibiting virus replication. Our data show that 1.2% NaCl inhibited virus replication by 90%, achieving 100% of inhibition at 1.5% in the nonhuman primate kidney cell line Vero, and 1.1% of NaCl was sufficient to inhibit the virus replication by 88% in human epithelial lung cell line Calu-3. Furthermore, our results indicate that the inhibition is due to an intracellular mechanism and not to the dissociation of the spike SARS-CoV-2 protein and its human receptor. NaCl depolarizes the plasma membrane causing a low energy state (high ADP/ATP concentration ratio) without impairing mitochondrial function, supposedly associated with the inhibition of the SARS-CoV-2 life cycle. Membrane depolarization and intracellular energy deprivation are possible mechanisms by which the hypertonic saline solution efficiently prevents virus replication in vitro assays. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 20/06409-1 - Evaluation of humoral immune response and inflammatory response in patients with confirmed diagnosis of COVID-19 at Hospital Sírio Libanês and correlation with disease severity
• Grantee: Edison Luiz Durigon
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• FAPESP's process: 19/00195-2 - Understanding the c-di-GMP signaling networks and the Type II secretion system present into the human pathogen Leptospira interrogans Copenhageni
• Grantee: Cristiane Rodrigues Guzzo Carvalho
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• FAPESP's process: 18/07366-4 - Purine and kinin receptors as targets of study and therapeutic interventions in neurological diseases
• Grantee: Alexander Henning Ulrich
• Support Opportunities: Research Projects - Thematic Grants
• FAPESP's process: 17/24769-2 - Zika virus in postpartum women and newborns: seroepidemiology and molecular characterization
• Grantee: Rafael Rahal Guaragna Machado
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate (Direct)
• FAPESP's process: 16/20045-7 - Antigen discovery and development of serological diagnostic methods and vaccine approaches against the Zika Virus (ZIKV)
• Grantee: Luis Carlos de Souza Ferreira
• Support Opportunities: Research Projects - Thematic Grants
• FAPESP's process: 20/04680-0 - Design of different fragments of SARS-CoV-2 surface protein spike for the development of fast diagnostic test and vaccine
• Grantee: Cristiane Rodrigues Guzzo Carvalho
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants