Innovation Pharmaceuticals Inc (IPIX)

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Innovation Pharmaceuticals and George Mason University Announce Public Release of Laboratory Testing Results Demonstrating Brilacidin’s COVID-19 Treatment Potential

Preprint article details research conducted at George Mason’s Regional Biocontainment Laboratory:
Brilacidin shown in vitro to potently inhibit SARS-CoV-2, the novel coronavirus causing COVID-19.
In a human lung cell line infected by SARS-CoV-2, Brilacidin achieved a high Selectivity Index of 426.
The primary mechanism of action of Brilacidin appears to disrupt viral integrity and block viral entry.
Brilacidin and FDA-approved remdesivir exhibit excellent synergistic activity in vitro against SARS-CoV-2.

The preprint article is being submitted for peer-review publication

WAKEFIELD, MA and FAIRFAX, VA – October 30, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) Innovation Pharmaceuticals (OTCQB:IPIX) (“the Company”), a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, and George Mason University’s (Mason’s) National Center for Biodefense and Infectious Diseases (NCBID), today jointly announce completion of extensive laboratory testing supporting anti-SARS-CoV-2 activity of Brilacidin, a defensin-mimetic drug candidate, which is being developed as a potential COVID-19 treatment.

Research findings are being submitted for peer-review publication. A preprint, available for download at the link below, is in the process of being posted to bioRxiv.org.

“Preprint: Brilacidin, a COVID-19 Drug Candidate, Exhibits Potent In Vitro Antiviral Activity Against SARS-CoV-2”
http://www.ipharminc.com/new-blog/2020/10/30/preprint-brilacidin-a-covid-19-drug-candidate-exhibits-potent-in-vitro-antiviral-activity-against-sars-cov-2

“We thank the scientists who have conducted an impressive amount of antiviral research on Brilacidin, which strongly supports its treatment potential in the fight against COVID-19,” commented Leo Ehrlich, Chief Executive Officer at Innovation Pharmaceuticals. “It is timely to have Brilacidin anchored in such sound science, as we anticipate commencing soon a clinical trial of Brilacidin for treatment of COVID-19. We look forward to continuing our antiviral research collaborations, while Brilacidin advances into clinical testing against COVID-19, where we believe Brilacidin can have a beneficial patient impact.”

“During the global COVID-19 pandemic, we selectively formed new external industry partnerships, including this opportunity to research a drug candidate like Brilacidin,” said Aarthi Narayanan, PhD, Associate Professor of Systems Biology in Mason’s College of Science. “In testing at GMU’s BSL-3 lab, we showed that Brilacidin potently inhibits SARS-CoV-2 in vitro against the live virus. Beyond exhibiting treatment potential for those already infected by COVID-19, Brilacidin’s ability to disrupt viral integrity and block viral entry indicates it has the added potential to prevent infection, upon appropriate formulation, as a prophylactic. I look forward to working with Innovation to investigate further Brilacidin’s antiviral properties,” Narayanan added.

“Brilacidin’s demonstration of potent antiviral activity against SARS-CoV-2 is important, particularly given its apparent ability to impact the virus directly,” said William F. DeGrado, PhD, Professor in the Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry at University of California San Francisco and Scientific Advisor to Innovation Pharmaceuticals. “This antiviral mechanism of action suggests Brilacidin might be able to inhibit other viruses and be less prone to resistance developing due to viral mutations—a weak spot for other antivirals, antibody-based treatments and vaccines. I am extremely hopeful Brilacidin will emerge as an effective COVID-19 treatment given the ongoing worldwide need for COVID-19 therapeutics.”