Novel immunotherapeutic approach to COVID-19

An immunotherapeutic approach that targets the patient instead of the virus has produced promising results in a preliminary clinical trial involving COVID-19 patients with severe bilateral viral pneumonia and hypoxemia. Four patients underwent a ten day treatment with nebulized DAS181, and experimental agent developed by the Ansun Biopharma company In San Diego, California. http://www.ansunbiopharma.com The study was conducted at Renmin Hospital in Wuhan, China, the original epicentre of the coronavirus pandemic. "These results are highly encouraging, as they demonstrate that DAS181 may potentially help reduce or eliminate some of the most significant symptoms associated with COVID-19," according to Dr. Zuojiong Gong and Dr. Ke Hu, the study's principal investigators at Renmin Hospital. "In the first 14 days of our study, the first two patients no longer required supplemental oxygen, and showed stabilized vital signs, increased oxygen saturation, and resolution of infiltrates on chest CT scans. The third patient, who had been a persistent SARS-CoV-2 carrier for more than 33 days, was completely virus-free before the end of the 10-day DAS181 regimen and met all discharge criteria, and the fourth is currently undergoing treatment and showing positive trends." Rather than act directly against the coronavirus, DAS181 was designed to block viral access to the surface of the epithelial cells lining the lungs. In particular, it cleaves sialic acid blocking a receptor that many respiratory viruses used to gain entry. The recombinant sialidase protein is also being investigated for treatment of severe influenza infections. In clinical trials for the treatment of influenza, the adverse effects of DAS181 treatment were mild and self-limited and did not impact duration of treatment. "We are excited about the preliminary data generated by our partners at Wuhan University, and we believe this is an important step towards determining the potential clinical utility of DAS181 at this critical time. Unlike other therapeutic approaches, DAS181 may inhibit the virus through multiple potential mechanisms of action including modifications of the host receptor, interference with endocytosis, prevention of cell-to-cell spread, and immunomodulation," said Dr. Nancy Chang, Chief Executive Officer of Ansun in a company press release. The US FDA has granted both Fast Track and Breakthrough Therapy Designation to DAS181. A two-stage randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical study is planned to confirm the early results and evaluate the safety and efficacy of DAS181 for the treatment of severe COVID-19 pneumonia. That trial will be conducted in 20 patients in the United States.  

Tags: covid-19 research