A coronavirus antiviral drug has succeeded in a critical trial, its California-based developer said Wednesday.
Gilead Sciences said remdesivir “has met its primary endpoint” in a trial study conducted by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. The biotechnology company stressed the drug is not yet licensed or approved anywhere globally and has not demonstrated to be safe or effective for coronavirus treatment.
The company didn’t provide any additional information, but Dr. Anthony Fauci, the institute’s director, called the development “very important.”
Remdesivir is given through an IV and is designed to interfere with an enzyme that reproduces viral genetic material.
In animal tests against SARS and MERS, diseases caused by similar coronaviruses, the drug helped prevent infection and reduced the severity of symptoms when given early enough in the course of illness. But it is not yet approved anywhere in the world for any use.
Having a treatment could have a profound effect on the global pandemic, especially because health officials say any vaccine is likely a year or more away.
The study tested remdesivir versus usual care in about 800 hospitalized coronavirus patients around the world. The main result is how long it takes patients to recover.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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