New and original therapeutic options against coronavirus disease are urgently anticipated in the ongoing current COVID-19 pandemic. Because of its rapid spread and vast number of individuals affected worldwide, cost-effective, universally available, and safe options with least side effects and simple use are extremely necessary. In this review, the potential use of zinc as preventive and therapeutic agent alone or in combination with other schemes are discussed. Generally, zinc meets the above described criteria effortlessly. Although several data on the association of the individual zinc status with viral and respiratory tract infections are available, study data regarding coronavirus infection is missing. However, it can be assumed as it is indicated by others and is detailed in this viewpoint, while focusing on re-balancing of the immune response by zinc supplementation.

Till now, the role of zinc in viral-induced vascular complications has rarely been discussed. Remarkably, most of the high risk groups that are described for COVID-19 are also associated with zinc deficiency. Zinc is essential to preserve natural tissue barriers of the respiratory epithelium, inhibiting pathogen entry, for a balanced role of the immune system and the redox system. Zinc deficiency can possibly be added to the factors affecting individuals to infection and harmful progression of COVID-19. In conclusion, because of the zinc’s direct antiviral properties, it can be expected that zinc supplementation is beneficial for most of the population, particularly in those with suboptimal zinc level.

Source: Wessels I, Rolles B, Rink L. The Potential Impact of Zinc Supplementation on COVID-19 Pathogenesis. Front Immunol. 2020;11:1712. Published 2020 Jul 10. doi:10.3389/fimmu.2020.01712