Lipid nanoparticle formulation of niclosamide (Nano ncm) effectively inhibits sars-cov-2 replication in vitro

Abstract

As exemplified by the COVID-19 pandemic, highly infectious respiratory viruses can spread rapidly in the population because of a lack of effective approaches to control viral replication and spread. Niclosamide is an old anthelminthic drug (see the essential medicine list of the World Health Organization) with pleiotropic pharmacological activities. Several recent publications demonstrated that niclosamide has broad antiviral activities and potently inhibits viral replication, including replication of SARS-CoV-2, SARS-CoV, and dengue viruses. Unfortunately, it is almost entirely insoluble in water, which limits its clinical use. We developed a cost-effective lipid nanoparticle formulation of niclosamide (nano-NCM) using only Food and Drug Administration-approved excipient and demonstrated potency against SARS-CoV-2 infection in Vero E6 and ACE2-expressing lung epithelium cells in vitro.