Pardes expects to start larger trial of COVID-19 antiviral pill by mid-year

Pardes Biosciences

14/02/2022 13:41

Feb 14 (Reuters) - Pardes Biosciences Inc  PRDS.O  said on
Monday it expects to start a mid-to-late-stage trial of its
experimental COVID-19 antiviral pill by mid-year, following
promising data from early human testing.
    Interim data from an ongoing early-stage trial has shown
that a twice daily intake of the pill, PBI-0451, can trigger
potent antiviral activity against SARS-CoV-2 and its emerging
variants, Pardes said. 
    The drug was well-tolerated and all adverse events reported
so far have been assessed as mild in severity and resolved
without intervention, the company added.
    The Pardes drug is a protease inhibitor, designed to prevent
the coronavirus from replicating in human cells. That is the
same class of medicine as Pfizer's  PFE.N  nirmatrelvir.
    When used in combination with Pfizer's older antiviral
ritonavir, nirmatrelvir was shown to cut the risk of
hospitalization or death by 89% for COVID-19 patients at high
risk of severe illness. 
    Pardes said its drug has the potential to be a standalone
treatment, unlike medicines such as Pfizer's two-drug antiviral
regimen Paxlovid, which need to be taken with a second booster
medication.
    

 (Reporting by Mrinalika Roy in Bengaluru; Editing by Devika
Syamnath)
 ((mrinalika.roy@thomsonreuters.com; within U.S. +1 646 223
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