Vicore Pharma study suggests C21 could complement COVID-19 vaccines
pharmafile | December 23, 2020 | News story | Research and Development | COVID-19, Vicore Pharma
Vicore Pharma, a Swedish company focused on developing medicines for severe lung disorders, has published data suggesting that its oral lead candidate drug, C21, can complement COVID-19 vaccines in tackling the virus.
The expanded data analysis follows encouraging top-line findings from the ATTRACT study reported by the company earlier this month, and shows restoration of lung function in COVID-19 patients who had taken the drug. According to the results, C21 gradually lowered the risk for patients needing oxygen supplementation with reductions of 40% at the end of the seven-day treatment, and 57% at day eight after start of treatment.
At the end of the trial, about a week after the last dose of C21, only one patient in the C21 group still required oxygen supplementation compared to 11 patients in the placebo group.
The reduced need for oxygen supplementation indicates that C21 stops virus-induced pathological processes in the distal airways and thereby restores lung function, suggesting that C21 may also be capable of preventing respiratory damage caused by the virus, and therefore the development of COVID-19.
Carl-Johan Dalsgaard, CEO of Vicore Pharma, said: “The critical incident in COVID-19 that makes this disease different to a common cold is the progression to the distal airways with respiratory distress and subsequent need for oxygen supplementation.
“Our data clearly show that C21 can restore lung function on top of steroids and normalise gas exchange. A safe oral medication with such properties can become an important complement to vaccines to combat the pandemic.”
Vicore Pharma’s ATTRACT study received £1.5 million in funding from the UK charity LifeArc, who launched a £10 million fund this year to support research and testing of therapeutics that could be rapidly deployed to help address the pandemic.
Darcy Jimenez
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