Pharmaforium: new approach to COVID-19 treatment

https://pharmaphorum.com/r-d/views-analysis-r-d/a-new-approach-to-covid-19-treatment/

While pharma has raced to develop COVID-19 vaccines, US-based company NeuroRx is taking a different approach to treating the virus. CEO Dr. Jonathan Javitt tells pharmaphorum about the science behind the company’s Zyesami, which targets the alveolar type II cells in the lung that are critical for transmission of oxygen.

Zyesami was developed in conjunction with partner Relief Therapeutics, and NeuroRx is currently awaiting results from a Phase 2b/3 trial (COVID-AIV) evaluating the therapeutic for the treatment of respiratory failure in COVID-19 patients.

Based on years of research by Professor Sami Said at New York’s Stony Brook University, the drug is a synthetic formulation of Vasoactive Intestinal Peptide (VIP), a naturally occurring peptide that is highly concentrated in the lungs. VIP is known to have potent anti-inflammatory effects and can inhibit coronavirus replication and block the formation of inflammatory cytokines.

Much more at link.