Filenews 25 September 2021 - by Marilena Panagi
After the war of vaccines and the battle fought last year by pharmaceutical companies internationally to manufacture them, in order for humanity to be able to tame the pandemic, scientists around the world are now intensifying their efforts and are focusing on conducting research to discover or finalize specialized treatments and / or treatment regimens to treat the disease caused by the coronavirus.
In recent months, and at a time when the number of deaths recorded globally during the pandemic is approaching 5 million (4.7 million), and at a time when the industries that have prevailed in the manufacture of vaccines in the past are now making efforts to improve/evolve their already administered formulations, the "race" to deal with the coronavirus from the prevention offered by vaccines, is transferred more intensively in the treatment, and scientists are fighting in three different directions.
The first direction concerns the manufacture of new, mainly antiviral drugs, the second, although international trials have been in progress for several months, concerns the use of monoclonal antibodies and the third, which in fact is a continuation of the efforts that had begun from the first moment of the outbreak of the coronavirus on the planet, concerns the use of old, known that is, from their use in other diseases, drugs in the treatment of covid-19 disease.
Monoclonal antibodies
Last week, the WHO made new announcements, this time concerning the use of monoclonal antibodies in two specific groups of patients. The announcements, however, did not fail to highlight both the cost of such treatment, as well as the practical difficulties that may arise during its administration to patients, as well as the possibility of new mutations of the coronavirus, which will greatly reduce its effectiveness.
In detail, on Thursday it became known that an international panel of experts of the Organization has recommended the combination therapy of the two monoclonal antibodies (casirivimab and imdevimab).
The first recommendation, according to the WHO, "is based on new data from three clinical trials that have not yet been published in scientific journals and which show that the 'cocktail' of antibodies can reduce the risk of hospitalization, as well as the duration of symptoms in patients at high risk of severe disease, such as the unvaccinated, the elderly and the immunocompromised."
The second recommendation, "is based on data from the large British recovery clinical trial showing that these two antibodies likely reduce the need for intubation and deaths in the severely ill with Covid-19, who have an inability to physically immune response to the virus."
"For all other patients," world health organization experts pointed out, "the benefits of antibody therapy are expected to be minimal."
Explaining the use of monoclonal antibodies, associate professor of pharmacology Christos Petrou told "F" that "they are generally intended for use in patients with mild or moderate COVID-19 severity, who did not need immediate hospitalization and who had a high risk of progression to a serious disease. They are only administered if someone has become ill and is predisposed to severe illness. They will not be suitable for everyone, but in limited groups of the vulnerable and vulnerable, they are administered intravenously, in a hospital and are not a treatment that one can take orally. But there are hopes that in the future they can also be granted subcutaneously."
Antiviral drugs
Clinical trials of industries to develop antiviral drugs for the coronavirus have been underway in recent months.
Merck in partnership with Ridgeback Biotherapeutics, Roche in partnership with Atea Pharmaceuticals and Pfizer are in phases 2 and 3 of their clinical trials for oral treatments.
"Molnupiravir" was originally developed for the treatment of influenza by Merck in collaboration with Ridgeback Biotherapeutics and is now being evaluated in a Phase III clinical trial.
- the Roche and Atea Pharmaceuticals are jointly developing "AT-527", an antiviral agent of direct action orally with an initial orientation against hepatitis C, which is now being studied in multiple clinical studies, including global phase 2 "moonsong" and Phase 3 "morningsky" trials against Sars CoV 2.
In a Phase 2 trial is the oral antiviral clinical candidate of Pfizer "PF-07321332". It was originally designed for intravenous use, however, Pfizer researchers have been able to change its structure to make it work as a pill. A very important detail is that it has shown strong antiviral action not only against SARS-CoV-2, but also against other coronaviruses.
Finally, the antiviral drug remdesivir against the coronavirus appears to be safe and effective in children with severe Covid-19 as it is in adults, according to an American study, the largest so far in children with severe infection.
Known drugs are under trial
Last August, the World Health Organization announced, in the first stage, the intention to start new clinical trials at international level with the aim of "measuring" the effectiveness of three specific treatments against Covid-19, namely artesunate, imatinib and infliximab, treatments that will be tested on patients of 600 hospitals in 52 different countries.
As WHO Director-General Tedros Antanom Gebregesus explained, "we are pleased to announce the upcoming phase of the Solidarity study, called "Solidarity PLUS", which will test three drugs: artesunate, a treatment against malaria in its severe form, imatinib, a drug against certain cancers, infliximab, a treatment for immune system disorders, such as Crohn's disease or rheumatoid arthritis."
The WHO, it said, in the development of these trials, hopes that it "will find additional tools to reduce mainly mortality due to Covid-19, as well as the duration of hospitalization."
It is recalled that in the first phase of the "Solidarity" study, four treatments were tested: remdesivir, hydrochloroquine, lopinavir and interferon with the first results, however, having already shown that these substances "had little or no effect on overall mortality". The final results, of this phase of course, have not yet been published.
