I was under the impression that chloroquine was used to facilitate cellular absorption of zinc and that the zinc was responsible for any antiviral behavior:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dT6mHi_8V5E
I was under the same impression. Zinc acts to disrupt cellular replication of viral cells, and this is true for MANY viruses. Cloroquine acts as a zinc ionophore providing a pathway for zinc to cross the cellular wall at much lower concentrations, greatly improving its effectiveness.
"One that I find particularly amusing, for personal reasons, is the idea of complexing zinc ions...So yeah, I can at least believe that these things complex zinc, for what that’s worth."
Not sure if this statement supports or refutes your theory; I'm inclined to believe the latter.
