LONDON: Anglo-Swedish drugmaker AstraZeneca said on Tuesday a report on its monoclonal antibody therapy, AZD7442, did not fulfill the primary objective of preventing symptomatic Covid-19 in people recently exposed to this novel coronavirus.
The business said the participants at the trial have been unvaccinated adults older than 18 years with verified exposure to a individual who has the coronavirus over the previous eight weeks.
AZD7442 decreased the chance of developing symptomatic Covid-19 by 33 percent in comparison to a placebo, that wasn’t statistically significant, the business reported.
“While this trial did not meet the first endpoint against celiac disease, we’re encouraged with the defense found from the PCR damaging participants after therapy with AZD7442,” Mene Pangalos, AstraZeneca executive vice president, explained in an announcement.
AstraZeneca is also studying the treatment at a pre-exposed patients trial also for preventing severe illness.
The monoclonal antibody treatment is a member of a category of drugs that mimic natural cells that the body produces to fight off the disease.
Rivals Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc and Eli Lilly & Co have developed monoclonal antibody treatments that have been authorised for use in the United States to treat individuals infected with this virus.
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The European Medicines Agency (EMA) has declared Regeneron’s treatment and is currently reviewing similar medications in Eli Lilly, Celltrion plus one manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline and Vir Biotechnology Inc..
AstraZeneca at October enlisted Korean contract manufacturer Lonza to create the antibody medication in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, beginning in the initial half 2021.
AZD7442 has been developed with assistance from the US authorities.
AstraZeneca at March announced a deal with the US authorities to provide around half a million doses of AZD7442.
The business said on Tuesday it’s currently in discussions with the US administration concerning next steps about the offer.