Pharmacists are rushing to develop a new generation of Covid-19 drugs to make them easier to give to patients and to stay ahead of virus mutations that could make some current drugs less effective.
The drugs, known as monoclonal antibodies, are lab-made versions of antibodies that simulate the body’s natural immune response to viruses. They are considered one of the most promising for preventing infected patients from developing serious or fatal symptoms and keeping them out of the hospital. After catching Covid-19, President Trump was treated with one of the drugs and attributed his speedy recovery. Doctors say the drugs will remain important treatments for the foreseeable future as vaccines become more widely available.
When the first generation of drugs was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in November to treat patients who were not yet sick enough to be hospitalized, public health officials feared there wouldn’t be enough to go around. But those concerns have given way to frustration that the drugs go unused due to challenges in the administration of the drugs, which can take about an hour to prepare for the patient to arrive, an infusion of one hour and one hour of follow-up to make sure the patient does this. does not. does not suffer from allergic reactions.
To reduce the logistical burden and get patients treated more quickly, researchers are working on new antibody drugs that can be given with rapid injections in the arm, similar to flu shots. They would enable patients to receive treatment quickly after they were diagnosed with Covid-19, said Michel C. Nussenzweig, an immunologist and professor at Rockefeller University in New York.
“That changes everything because you can get that chance with CFS and get that chance with your doctor,” said Dr. Nussenzweig, whose lab developed an antibody combination that recently started the first phase 1 safety studies. “Intravenous administration is a headache. It’s just a cumbersome thing to do. “