The Possible Protective Effect of Metformin in COVID-19 Infection

Coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) infections with more than 30 million confirmed cases are increasing rapidly, requiring urgent and safe treatment. Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), a virus responsible for the infection of COVID-19. Metformin (M) is a biguanide drug used as a first choice for the management of hyperglycemia in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Furthermore, it is safe and currently available. It is speculated that metformin can be used for T2DM patients with COVID-19, because in addition to its hypoglycemic effect, this biguanide also shows many beneficial effects, including anti-inflammatory effects and cardiopulmonary protection especially by angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) targeting. Therefore, the reasons for the use of metformin in COVID-19 patients were discussed in this study. Metformin has a promising role in treatment of COVID-19 in T2DM and obese women patients.