WASHINGTON: The US has begun late stage clinical trials into a drug formulated to fight Covid-19, officials said Tuesday. The medicine is an antibody against the new coronavirus called LY-CoV555, which was identified in the blood sample of a recovered patient by Canada's Abcellera Biologics. It was then developed synthetically for mass production by US-based Lilly Research Laboratories in partnership with Abcellera.
The Phase 3 trial will initially enroll some 300 volunteers around the world who have been hospitalized with mild to moderate Covid-19 with fewer than 13 days of symptoms. Each will be assigned either the medicine, which will be injected intravenously, or a placebo.
Patients will also receive standard care for Covid-19, including the antiviral remdesivir. The new Phase 3 trial is being led by Jens Lundgren, of the University of Copenhagen and Rigshospitalet, and could expand to up to 1,000 people, including the more severely ill, if LY-CoV555 appears safe and effective after the fifth day. The trial's main goal is the patients' sustained recovery for 14 days after release from the hospital.
Comments
Comments are closed for this article.