Exploring NFkB pathway as a potent strategy to mitigate COVID-19 severe morbidity and mortality

• Published in: Journal of public health in Africa 2022-09, Vol.13 (3), p.10
• Main Authors: Muhammad, Mubarak, Hassan, Tasneem M., Baba, Sani S., Radda, Mustapha I., Mutawakkil, Mubarak M., Musa, Majida A., AbuBakar, Sazaly, Loong, Shih Keng, Yusuf, Ibrahim
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: covid-19; cytokine storm; nfkb; sars-cov-2
• ISSN: 2038-9922; 2038-9930
• DOI: 10.4081/jphia.2022.1679

The pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), for which there does not appear to be an approved cure, the primary treatment options consist of non-pharmacological preventive measures and supportive treatment that are aimed at halting the progression of the disease. Nuclear factor kappa B (NFkB) presents a promising therapeutic opportunity to mitigate COVID-19-induced cytokine storm and reduce the risk of severe morbidity and mortality resulting from the disease. However, the effective clinical application of NFkB modulators in COVID-19 is hampered by a number of factors that must be taken into consideration. This paper therefore explored the modulation of the NFB pathway as a potential strategy to mitigate the severe morbidity and mortality caused by COVID-19. The paper also discusses the factors that form the barrier, and it offers potential solutions to the various limitations that may impede the clinical use of NFkB modulators against COVID-19. This paper revealed and identified three key potential solutions for the future clinical use of NFkB modulators against COVID-19. These solutions are pulmonary tissue-specific NFkB blockade, agents that target common regulatory proteins of both canonical and non-canonical NFkB pathways, and monitoring clinical indicators of hyperinflammation and cytokine storm in COVID-19 prior to using NFkB modulators.