According to a study, melatonin — a hormone primarily released by the pineal gland that regulates the sleep-wake cycle — could be an effective treatment option for coronavirus.

The study, published in the journal PLOS Biology , employed an artificial intelligence platform to look for possible drugs that can be repurposed for Covid-19 treatment.

As per the study, the examination of data gathered from patients admitted at the US-based Cleveland Clinic’s Covid-19 ward revealed that melatonin usage can reduce the likelihood of testing positive for the virus by 30 per cent.

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For the study, the researchers also looked at patients’ age, race, smoking history, and various disease comorbidities.

The researchers noted that the likelihood of testing positive for the virus reduced by 30 to 52 per cent for African Americans when adjusted for the same variables.

Note of caution

Lead author of the study Feixiong Cheng, an assistant staff at Cleveland, said: “It is very important to note these findings do not suggest people should start to take melatonin without consulting their physician.”

“Large-scale observational studies and randomised controlled trials are critical to validate the clinical benefit of melatonin for patients with Covid-19, but we are excited about the associations put forth in this study and the opportunity to further explore them,” Cheng said.

The researchers found 34 drugs that can be repurposed to cure conditions like autoimmune, pulmonary, and neurological diseases, also associated with Covid-19 symptoms. The main ingredient of the drugs was melatonin.

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