Swiss pharmaceutical company Novartis has announced successful tests with an experimental Covid-19 treatment that reduces the viral load in eight days.
The company, alongside Molecular Partners, reported positive results from the study that involved 407 people. It showed an overall reduction of 78% in the number of hospitalisations and deaths among infected patients who received the treatment.
"We are pleased that the results from the EMPATHY trial demonstrate the positive therapeutic effect, with the potential to be an important new treatment option to combat the rapidly evolving coronavirus pandemic," CEO of Novartis Vas Narasimhan said in a press release.
The treatment also works against the Omicron variant of the coronavirus, which has rapidly become the dominant variant in many countries, resulting in the number of new cases skyrocketing in short periods of time.
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The experimental drug is specifically designed to block the receptor-binding domains of the coronavirus spike protein through highly potent and cooperative binding. It could become the first approved drug to attack the coronavirus’s spike protein in multiple ways, which could make it effective against a number of current and future variants.
Unlike Covid-19 pills, the medicine has to be administered via an intravenous infusion, meaning patients will have to see a doctor to receive the treatment.
The company has now lifted an option for a licence on the drug and will now take over the development, production, distribution, and commercialisation from Molecular Partners.
It has already taken steps to scale up production and plans to seek authorisation for the drug, starting with the United States Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Emergency Use Authorisation (EUA).
