ENA Respiratory doses first patients with INNA-051 antiviral nasal spray
pharmafile | February 17, 2026 | News story | | Ear Nose & throat, Ena Respiratory
ENA Respiratory, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company specialising in the prevention of viral respiratory infections, has announced the first dosing of patients in its study of INNA-051, a nasal spray designed to lessen the impact of symptomatic viral respiratory infections.
The dosing took place as part of the phase 2 community POSITS trial, whose goal is to study the safety, tolerability and efficacy of INNA-051. More specifically, the trial aims to evaluate the spray’s effect on symptomatic respiratory infections in young adults who live or work in crowded environments and thus are at higher risk of infection. These include those living in crowded households, university accommodation and barracks.
POSITS will recruit up to 1,100 healthy participants. The current phase of the trial is a four-week safety evaluation with 200 participants involved. After this, a further 900 participants will undergo three-month study.
The first patient was dosed at the Center for Vaccine Development and Global Health (CVD) at the University of Maryland, Baltimore. Other participants are being recruited at the Naval Medical Research Command (NMRC) Clinical Trials Center, Bethesda, Maryland.
INNA-051 is a once-weekly dry powder nasal spray whose aim is to prime the nose’s antiviral host defences. By encouraging the body to respond more rapidly to viruses such as colds, flu, RSV and coronavirus, INNA-051 is designed to decrease the prevalence of serious complications in high-risk patients.
Viral respiratory infections pose a significant worldwide health risk, and can be especially dangerous for patients with medical conditions such as cancer, asthma, heart disease and diabetes.
Christophe Demaison, CEO of ENA, said: “There were over a million hospitalisations and up to 200,000 deaths in the US in 2025 from respiratory-related viral infections in such patients last year. By boosting the body’s natural host defence pathways INNA-051 could offer a new option for millions of vulnerable patients worldwide and this study is an opportunity to add significantly to our evidence of its potential.”
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