Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) and its neuroinvasive capacity: Is
it time for melatonin?
Abstract
The world faces an exceptional new public health concern caused by the
severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2),
subsequently termed the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) by the World
Health Organization (WHO). Although the clinical symptoms mostly have
been characterized, the scientific community still doesn´t know how
SARS-CoV-2 successfully reaches and spread throughout the central
nervous system (CNS) inducing brain damage. The recent detection of SARS
CoV-2 in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and in frontal lobe sections from
postmortem examination have confirmed the presence of the virus in
neural tissue. Here, we discuss the COVID-19 outbreak in a
neuroinvasiveness context and suggest the therapeutic use of high doses
of melatonin, which may favorably modulate the immune response and
neuroinflammation caused by SARS-CoV-2. However, clinical trials
elucidating the efficacy of melatonin in the prevention and clinical
management in the COVID-19 patients should be actively encouraged.