Key points:

Ivermectin, a widely used anti-parasitic agent, is probably the world's most profound anti-viral agent but inexplicably goes unused in the battle against human viral infections, such as COVID-19 coronavirus. Just a single dose of ivermectin abolishes COVID-10 coronavirus in a lab dish.

Ivermectin works additively with zinc to control viral and bacterial infections.

Ivermectin and zinc work, in part, by increasing ATP cell energy levels.

Surprisingly, an extract of Panax red ginseng also exhibits similar anti-viral action to ivermectin.

The cell energy currency adeno triphosphate (ATP) independently exhibits anti-viral activity.

Given that ATP production in the body is dependent upon magnesium, indirectly this essential mineral is important in maintaining immunity from viral infections.

Likewise, coenzyme Q10, a natural antioxidant produced in the body that facilitates ATP production, has also been found to have potent antiviral/anti-bacterial properties.

While the world awaits a vaccine to prevent COVID-19 coronavirus infections, a report in the journal Antiviral Research provides an account of a recent laboratory experiment where ivermectin, a known anti-viral agent and widely used anti-parasitic agent, produced a ~5000-fold reduction in viral COVID-19 coronavirus RNA!  COVID-19 coronavirus is a single-stranded RNA virus.

Given that most people infected with any coronavirus experience mild or no symptoms, a safe and effective drug could be used to treat or prevent infections among high-risk individuals (diabetics, smokers, drug users, alcohol abusers, the elderly, thus avoiding vaccination of the many millions of immune-compromised individuals who won't develop adequate antibodies and therefore may not benefit from vaccination and are likely to experience vaccine-induced side effects.

Ivermectin is an FDA-approved anti-parasitic agent, so safe it is sprayed from aircraft into areas where water-borne parasites abound.

In a lab dish, 24-hours after infection of live cells with COVID-19 coronavirus, ivermectin reduced RNA by 93%.  At the 48-hour point ivermectin treatment "resulted in the effective loss of essentially all viral material."  A single dose was able to control all viral replications.

Researchers said: "if ivermectin is given to patients early in infection, it could help to limit the viral load, prevent severe disease progression and limit person-to-person transmission."  High-dose ivermectin has a good safety profile.

The discovery of ivermectin's ability to rapidly abolish COVID-19 coronavirus particles is announced at a time when an article in The Wall Street Journal entitled "Scientists Rush To Find Coronavirus Cure – But It Still Isn't Fast Enough," points to 140 experimental drug treatments and vaccines under development that are not likely to exceed the demonstrable viral-killing effect of ivermectin and certainly do not have ivermectin's safety profile.  But if it doesn't come from Big Pharma, the public won't likely hear about it.  The frightened masses are forced to locate online sources of ivermectin for veterinary use, knowing their doctors aren't going to incorporate it into the fight against viral diseases.