Ottawa (AFP)
Canadian researchers are looking at a food - the fruit of the acai palm - in their quest for a treatment for the most severe symptoms of the coronavirus, one of them announced Monday.
Previous studies have shown that extracts from the berry of this palm native to Central and South America can reduce inflammation.
As the novel coronavirus pandemic spreads around the world, experts note that the virus can cause acute inflammation and lead to health complications.
A researcher from the University of Toronto, Michael Farkouh, and his colleague Ana Andreazza, who has been examining the effect of the fruit on the inflammatory response for five years, have therefore decided to test its effectiveness against Covid-19 disease.
"It's a simple test," Farkouh told AFP.
"But acai berries are inexpensive and readily available to everyone, are safe, so it was worth a try."
For their research, experts recruited some 580 patients who tested positive for coronavirus in Canada and Brazil, where the palm tree is grown.
Half of the patients received doses of the investigational drug, the other half a placebo.
The hope is that early intervention with the berry extract, if proven to work, will prevent the worst symptoms associated with the potentially fatal virus, Farkouh said.
He explains that the berry extract targets the same group of proteins, called the NLRP3 inflammasome, as the coronavirus.
Once activated, these proteins fight infections and stress.
The study is set to last 30 days and its results will be released at the end of 2020.
© 2020 AFP