New Israeli drug successful vs fatal COVID-19 immune response in initial study — expert
MANILA, Philippines — A new drug developed in Israel successfully treated at least 30 patients with severe cases of COVID-19 in initial trials, the researchers behind it said Wednesday.
The drug, EXO-CD24, is a "targeted innovative platform...delivered directly to the lungs in order to suppress the cytokine storm," or the overreaction of the immune system, doctor Nadir Arber of Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center said in a virtual presentation released by the Embassy of Israel in Manila to reporters.
Arber, who led the development of the EXO-CD24 treatment, is an expert in internal medicine and gastroenterology and directs the hospital's cancer prevention center.
Also giving the presentation was doctor Shiran Shapira who directs the hospital's cancer diagnosis and prevention center's molecular biology lab which Arber has used to research the CD24 protein for over two decades.
The drug "does not treat the virus itself," Arber clarified. "What we have established is actually a platform to treat.. acute respiratory distress syndrome."
Acute respiratory distress syndrome, he further explained, "is the outcome of the viral infection and the immune system in the body and this is what [can] cause and lead to the pulmonary lung insufficiency, that in some cases lead[s] to intubations, ventilation, and even death."
A report from The Times of Israel published on February 5 said that all 30 patients who participated in Phase 1 trials recovered from the disease and that 29 of them did so within three to five days.
The patients were all suffering from severe cases of COVID-19, according to Arber. Their ages ranged from 37 to 77 years old.
As it stands, the drug has been administered to a total of 36 people, one of whom was recruited "out of protocol," Arber said. "All of them are feeling good."
"The biggest advantage of our drug is that it can be produced efficiently, effectively, rapidly, it's easy to produce at low cost, and [it has shown] no side effects," Arber said, adding that he was hopeful that enough of the drug could be produced in the next few months to meet global need.
However, despite growing excitement in Israel and abroad over the drug, it must still hurdle through Phase 2 trials, which would include a few dozen more patients and a control group, and Phase 3 trials which could involve hundreds or thousands of patients.
"There's been a lot of requests from all over the globe to participate, to have this and we are very happy because there is nothing like international multicenter study versus placebo to know the truth," he said.
"At the same time, we have to be very conscious and conservative and make sure that safety is a major issue."
Arber did not specify which countries may get to participate in Phase 3 trials.
After a recording of the virtual presentation was released to reporters on Thursday, Deputy Chief of Mission at the Embassy of Israel in Manila Nir Balzam said the consulate would "continue to cooperate with the Philippines in our joint efforts against COVID-19."
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