Metabolic alterations upon SARS-CoV-2 infection and potential therapeutic targets against coronavirus infection

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 infection has become a global pandemic due to the high viral transmissibility and pathogenesis, bringing enormous burden to our society. Most patients infected by SARS-CoV-2 are asymptomatic or have mild symptoms. Although only a small proportion of patients progressed to severe COVID-19 with symptoms including acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), disseminated coagulopathy, and cardiovascular disorders, severe COVID-19 is accompanied by high mortality rates with near 7 million deaths. Nowadays, effective therapeutic patterns for severe COVID-19 are still lacking. It has been extensively reported that host metabolism plays essential roles in various physiological processes during virus infection. Many viruses manipulate host metabolism to avoid immunity, facilitate their own replication, or to initiate pathological response. Targeting the interaction between SARS-CoV-2 and host metabolism holds promise for developing therapeutic strategies. In this review, we summarize and discuss recent studies dedicated to uncovering the role of host metabolism during the life cycle of SARS-CoV-2 in aspects of entry, replication, assembly, and pathogenesis with an emphasis on glucose metabolism and lipid metabolism. Microbiota and long COVID-19 are also discussed. Ultimately, we recapitulate metabolism-modulating drugs repurposed for COVID-19 including statins, ASM inhibitors, NSAIDs, Montelukast, omega-3 fatty acids, 2-DG, and metformin.

© The Author(s) 2023