Chinese and European experts announced over the weekend that a drug used to help treat schizophrenia also shows promise as being a cure for severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). The drug in question is cinanserin.
Overall, teams of both Chinese and European experts tested 15 different drugs in the hope of finding a cure for SARS. Of the 15, however, only cinanserin underwent sufficient testing. Cinanserin blocks the cornanvirus that triggers SARS.
Peter Kristensen from the University of Aarhus in Denmark said: “Cinanserin could be directly prescribed to prevent the SARS disease or treat SARS patients if the fatal epidemic makes a comeback.”
