With a change of strategy in the development of a Coronavirus drug apparently achieved first successes. The scientists have developed a protein that reliably prevents infection by the virus and its variants in cell experiments, said Professor Ulrike Protzer from the Institute of Virology at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) on Tuesday. So far, there have only been partial successes in the development of drugs against Covid-19, the current change in strategy by researchers is now promising.
Antibody therapy against Covid-19 is prone to mutations
So far, the most effective drug therapies against SARS-CoV-2 are so-called Antibody therapies. However, the virus could get through mutation evade attack by the therapeutic antibodies. “Both vaccines and antibody drugs have the problem that the virus evades them a little with each successful mutation,” explained Protzer. This creates so-called “immune escape” variants.
New drug blocks virus spike protein
The scientists at TUM, Ludwig Maximilians University Munich (LMU), Helmholtz Munich and Munich Formycon AG are therefore pursuing a different strategy and creating an active ingredient that Spike protein of the virus blocked. In cell culture experiments, they were able to completely neutralize the virus and prevent infection, according to the TUM.
“Even if the vaccination severe disease courses very reliable prevented, The significantly more contagious Delta and Omicron variants have shown that both those who have recovered and those who have been vaccinated can become infected again, “said Protzer. Against the background of future, possibly even more contagious variants, a broadly effective active ingredient against this is therefore needed in addition to the vaccination Virus.
Clinical trials will begin in the first half of 2022
Laboratory tests with the fusion protein, the original virus and the variants alpha, beta and delta were according to the communication very promising. Experiments with the Omikron variant have just started. The researchers expect to be able to start clinical studies in the first half of next year.