If you’re like me, you might be surprised that COVID-19 is not only still deeply ingrained in our world, but it seems to continue growing. As of the afternoon of October 9, 2020, there are 36.7 million diagnosed cases worldwide with an associated 1.06 million deaths. In the United States alone, there are 7.68 million cases – and 213,000 deaths – associated with this viral pandemic. While many drug developers are working towards treatments and cures, society still sits in wait for something effective. Now, according to a recent press release, ViralClear Pharmaceuticals (“ViralClear”) and Sorrento Therapeutics (“Sorrento”) are partnering up to explore (and possibly develop) combination antibody-antiviral therapies.
Antibody-Antiviral Therapies
On MedPage Today’s Anamnesis podcast, Molly Walker spoke with Dr. Anthony Fauci, MD, one of the most pronounced names of the current pandemic. One of the topics they dug into was that of monoclonal antibodies, often used for antibody therapies. According to Dr. Fauci:
The fundamental mechanism of a monoclonal antibody is…kind of like getting a neutralizing antibody that’s highly concentrated and highly specific, so the mechanism involved is blocking of the virus from essentially entering its target cell in the body and hence interrupting the course of infection.
Monoclonal antibodies can either be used as prophylaxis to prevent infection or to actually treat someone who’s already infected.
So, as it has a level of protection already involved in it, monoclonal antibodies are a logical choice for the treatment of COVID-19. As for antiviral therapies, there are no approved antiviral therapies to treat COVID-19. However, there are investigational therapies, such as Regeneron’s antiviral and antibody cocktail.
While both antibody or antiviral therapies have the potential to be efficacious in treating COVID-19, antibody-antiviral therapies offer the best of both worlds. These multi-modal antibody-antiviral cocktails can enhance the beneficial effects of each therapeutic molecule, while also balancing the negative effects.
When ViralClear and Sorrento begin working together, they will test merimepodib (an IMPDH-inhibitor with antiviral and immunosuppressive effects) with neutralizing antibodies. At first, this combination will not be tested on humans. It will first be tested on hamster models of COVID-19. Through the research, ViralClear and Sorrento seek to understand the efficacy, doses, safety, and tolerability of the antibody-antiviral blend. If the data is promising, the partners may seek to start a human clinical trial.
