German Study Discovers Papaverine’s Potential in Fighting COVID-19 and Calming Immune Reactions
Nikhil Prasad Fact checked by:Thailand Medical News Team Apr 18, 2025 1 day, 14 hours, 19 minutes ago
Medical News: A team of German scientists has uncovered a surprising new use for an old drug. Papaverine, a compound originally used to treat heart and blood vessel conditions, is now showing powerful effects against the SARS-CoV-2 virus. But that is not all — it also helps to calm the body’s immune system, which can sometimes spiral out of control in COVID-19 patients. These findings come from researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Translational Medicine and Pharmacology in Hamburg and Frankfurt, the Institute for Medical Virology at Goethe University Frankfurt, and the Dr. Petra Joh Research Institute.
German Study Discovers Papaverine’s Potential in Fighting COVID-19 and Calming Immune Reactions
Papaverine was previously known to help relax blood vessels and even showed anticancer and anti-inflammatory properties. Now, in this
Medical News report, it emerges as a promising double-action drug that can both stop the virus and tame the overactive immune response. Researchers believe this could make it a strong candidate for future COVID-19 treatments, especially when used alongside existing drugs.
How Papaverine Works Against the Virus
The scientists discovered that papaverine works against multiple variants of the coronavirus, including Alpha, Beta, Delta, and Omicron. It interferes with the virus not at the beginning of infection, but later in the cycle — after the virus has already entered human cells. That makes it especially useful because it can be used to treat active infections rather than prevent them.
In tests using human lung and intestinal cells, as well as real airway cells from donated lung tissue, papaverine was able to significantly reduce the amount of virus present. What makes this even more impressive is that it worked against both SARS-CoV-2 and the influenza virus H1N1 — even in cases where the cells were infected with both viruses at the same time. This is important because co-infections with COVID and flu are becoming more common and are known to worsen disease severity.
Papaverine Calms the Immune System Storm
In addition to its antiviral power, papaverine also affects the body’s immune response — and in a good way. One of the reasons COVID-19 can be deadly is because it sometimes causes the immune system to go into overdrive, releasing too many inflammatory chemicals called cytokines. This leads to what is known as a “cytokine storm,” which can cause severe lung damage and even death.
Papaverine appears to block a key part of this storm — a pathway involving proteins called STAT1 and STAT2. These proteins help carry signals inside cells in response to infection, leading to the release of even more inflammatory substances. Papaverine prevents these proteins from entering the cell’s nucleus, essentially cutting off the signal before it gets out of hand.
What makes this even more significant is that papaverine does not stop the body from releasing interferon
s — the immune system’s early warning signals. Instead, it acts downstream, quieting the storm without shutting off the alarm. That means it may allow the immune system to respond to infection without going too far and damaging the body’s own tissues.
Safer Than Many Other Immune Modulators
Current drugs that suppress immune responses in COVID-19, such as baricitinib, must be used very carefully because they can also increase the risk of viral spread. However, papaverine stands out because it not only calms inflammation but also directly attacks the virus itself. That means it might offer a safer and more effective way to treat severe COVID-19 cases.
The researchers tested papaverine’s effects alongside approved antivirals like Paxlovid (nirmatrelvir), remdesivir, and molnupiravir. When used in combination, the results showed strong synergy — meaning the drugs worked even better together than they did alone. This opens up the possibility of lower doses, fewer side effects, and better outcomes for patients.
A Well Known Drug With a New Future
One of papaverine’s biggest advantages is that it is already approved for use in humans and has a known safety profile. Side effects are generally mild and reversible, making it an attractive option for quick repurposing. Researchers say its effects on both the virus and the immune system — particularly the STAT1/2 pathway — could make it especially valuable in treating COVID-19 and perhaps other viral infections in the future.
Conclusion
This study strongly supports the idea that papaverine could be a dual-action therapy against COVID-19, offering both antiviral and immune-modulating effects. Its ability to target post-entry phases of viral replication and to selectively calm harmful immune responses without completely suppressing the immune system sets it apart from other drugs. Combined with its safety and the fact that it is already available for other uses, papaverine may soon find new life as part of combination therapies for COVID-19 — and possibly for other viral infections that trigger intense immune responses. However, researchers caution that more preclinical and clinical studies are needed before it can be widely recommended for this new purpose.
The study findings were published in the peer reviewed Journal of Medical Virology.
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/jmv.70319
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