A review of the role of dipyridamole in treating COVID-19.

Dipyridamole (DIP) belongs to the class of antiplatelet drugs and functions as a phosphodiesterase 3 & 5 (PDE3 and PDE5) inhibitor that enhances intracellular cAMP/cGMP concentrations. Besides the well-established platelet agglutination inhibition activity, DIP may offer advantageous therapeutic actions to patients suffering from COVID-19. Various clinical and experimental studies have indicated that DIP possesses broad-spectrum antiviral actions, and its administration has shown to suppress SARS-CoV-2 replication in Vero E6 cells. Moreover, it has been reported that DIP suppress inflammation, possess anti-oxidative properties and enhances nitric oxide mediated cellular pathways. Experimental evidences have shown that DIP may protect acute damage and progressive fibrosis of the renal, cardiac, and hepatic tissues. Here we provide evidence advocating DIP as a possible therapy against major COVID-19 complications such as acute kidney injury, acute respiratory distress syndrome, and acute liver injury encompassing the pieces of evidence directly from DIP