A preprint study published by researchers at the University of Alabama has found what could be a viable antiviral treatment for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, by using a compound called D-α-tocopherol polyethylene glycol succinate (TPGS).
Alpha tocopherol (a-tocopherol) is a form of vitamin E. D-α-tocopherol polyethylene glycol succinate is an FDA-approved, water-soluble, synthetic molecule derivative of the vitamin.
Researchers reported that they had “determined that TPGS and other water-soluble derivatives of α-tocopherol inhibit the transcriptional activity” of the virus, “making it an effective antiviral molecule alone and even more so in combination with remdesivir,” a prescription antiviral drug that health officials have been using to treat COVID-19.
Interestingly, the researchers also noted that they consider the water-solubility component a “key factor” in how it works.
SOURCES:
bioRxiv July 13, 2021
Science Direct 2000
Carbon N.Y. 2007