What are the prospects of a treatment for coronavirus?

Guardian science journalists pick out the most promising remedies and ask whether there is any evidence that they could work

Chloroquine is a cheap, widely available drug that has been routinely used since 1945 against malaria and other conditions and can be safely taken by pregnant women and children. Lab studies found the antiviral drug was effective against the coronavirus, at least in a petri dish, and results from a small French study in 24 patients, announced this week, suggested that it could quicken recovery. Doctors said 25% of patients who received the drug tested positive for the virus after six days, compared with 90% of those who did not receive it. Chloroquine and a related drug, hydroxychloroquine, are among the four treatments tested in an international clinical trial, announced on Wednesday by the World Health Organisation (WHO), and the UK has added chloroquine to its list of medicines under export controls.