Blood Hemostasis Dysfunction and Inflammation in COVID-19 Patients: Viral and Host Active Molecules as Therapeutic Targets

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic is challenging world health authorities and researchers. WHO is supervising many clinical studies to ascertain whether some known drugs can be effective against the disease. Meanwhile, researchers around the globe are working on cellular and molecular mechanisms that are key steps of SARS-Cov-2 associated infection. Blood hemostasis dysfunction, inflammation, hypoxia and venous thrombotic events are reported to be involved in the pathophysiology of COVID-19 patients at early and late severe stages of the disease. It is of high relevance to understand how SARS-Cov-2 triggers negative cellular and biochemical events in infected persons. A large number of cell species and active molecules, such as blood and tissue enzymes, cytokines, and other active amines and lipid inflammatory molecular species, can be involved in immune reactions and host defense mechanisms upon human infectious diseases or other kinds of health issues such as trauma or snake envenomation. Possible physiopathology trends of COVID-19 and some therapeutic perspectives are discussed in the present minireview.