RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The British pharmaceutical firm AstraZeneca, which is working on the development of a vaccine for the novel coronavirus jointly with Oxford University, has announced that it is also producing a drug to treat and prevent Covid-19.
The company said the study is assessing whether AZD7442 – a combination of two monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) – is safe and tolerable by humans. The trial is being conducted on 48 healthy participants aged 18 to 55 in the UK.
The mAbs mimic natural antibodies to fight infection and can be synthesized in the laboratory. Currently, the technique is used to treat some chronic diseases and types of cancer.
Should the initial trial prove AZD7442 is safe, AstraZeneca said it would continue testing it both as a preventive treatment for Covid-19 and as a drug for patients who are infected with the virus.
The development of monoclonal antibodies against the virus is being conducted by other pharmaceutical companies, such as Regeneron, Eli Lilly, Roche, and Molecular Partner.
“Promising treatment”
Last Monday, August 24th, Bruce Aylward, assistant Director-General of the World Health Organization (W.H.O.), said the treatment is promising and, if proven effective and safe, can be used as a substitute for a potential vaccine for groups to whom the immunizer is not appropriate.
Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases in the United States and one of the leading infectologists in the country, defined this type of drug as “almost a sure bet” against the novel coronavirus.
In June, AstraZeneca was granted US$23.7 million (R$130 million) by the US government to advance the development of antibody treatments against Covid-19.
“This combination of antibodies, together with our half-life extension technology, has the potential to improve the drug’s efficacy and durability, as well as reduce the likelihood of viral resistance,” said Mene Pangalos, executive vice-president of biopharmaceuticals at the British company.
While vaccines are at the heart of the long-term fight against the pandemic, alternative treatments are also being developed.
Billionaire Bill Gates, one of the world’s leading names in the fight against the coronavirus, has also given interviews saying that the solution to the pandemic should begin with therapeutic treatments, which must be approved before a vaccine.
Last weekend, the United States authorized the use of plasma from recovered Covid-19 patients to treat those who are sick.
According to the Financial Times, the Trump government is trying to expedite approval of the AstraZeneca and Oxford University experimental vaccine against the novel coronavirus in order for the U.S. to offer it to Americans before the elections.
Source: InfoMoney