Clinica chimica acta; international journal of clinical chemistry
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Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by the virus designated as severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has spread widely throughout the world. Despite the strict global outbreak management and quarantine measures that have been implemented, the incidence of COVID-19 continues to rise, resulting in more than 290,000 deaths and representing an extremely serious threat to human life and health. ⋯ Pieces of evidence from current studies have shown that the cytokine storm may be an important factor in disease progression, even leading to multiple organ failure and death. This review provides an overview of the knowledge on the COVID-19 epidemiological profile, the molecular mechanisms of the SARS-CoV-2-induced cytokine storm and immune responses, the pathophysiological changes that occur during infection, the main antiviral compounds used in treatment strategies and the potential drugs for targeting cytokines, this information is presented to provide valuable guidance for further studies and for a therapeutic reduction of this excessive immune response.