Aug 10th (Q2 call)
"Today, we are extremely pleased to report that the Company and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease within NIH have successfully completed the planned in vitro studies of various LNC formulations of Remdesivir. LNC Remdesivir formulations were tested for anti-viral activity against the Washington SARS-CoV-2 strain in [Indiscernible] which are highly permissive for SARS-CoV-2 infections.
Unformulated Remdesivir active was tested as a comparison. Following close review of these data with NIAID the LNC formulations tested in this model demonstrated meaningful antiviral activity as compared to free Remdesivir, while also showing a favorable toxicity profile.
Given the impressive nature of these data NIAID is now preparing to initiate an in vivo efficacy study of the most potent LNC Remdesivir formulation as soon as possible. We expect additional data to be available in the fourth quarter of 2021.
These in-vitro data represent a big step forward, in not only showing that our LNC Platform can be potentially effectively used to create an oral formulation of Remdesivir, but are also an important proof of principle for the intracellular delivery of antiviral medicines more broadly. As we face the ongoing reality of a continued fight against COVID-19, the need for effective, well-tolerated antiviral drugs that can be given to patients at high risk for severe disease at early stages of illness remains extremely high.
An oral version of Gilead's remdesivir has the potential to be an important option for physicians around the world in the fight against COVID-19, since an oral remdesivir would permit administration earlier in the disease course, as well as potential for prophylactic use, should clinical studies support such an approach.
We are very happy with our progress to date on this project and look forward to -- with great anticipation to the NIH's planned in vivo study in the near-term."
