Covid-19: Treatments, Cures, and Vaccines

G8trGr8t · Jun 4, 2020

duchen said: ↑

Time for the SEC to step in.
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SEC urged to investigate coronavirus vaccine maker
An anti-corruption watchdog group is urging the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to investigate top executives at Moderna, the biotech firm developing a promising coronavirus vaccine, for allegedly manipulating the stock market.

"This misconduct was particularly egregious because it involved not only financial fraud and manipulation of the financial markets, but also because it exploited widespread fears surrounding the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic," wrote Kyle Herrig, who heads Accountable.US, in a letter to the SEC. "I strongly urge the SEC to investigate these matters."

The group's concerns center on insider trading activity at Moderna after the company last month announced positive results in Phase 1 trials of its coronavirus vaccine. The news pushed up the company's stock price 30% to an all-time high of $87. In the days following the announcement, Moderna's CEO, other executives and funds controlled by the chairman of its board sold about $90 million worth of company shares.

ncargat1 · Jun 4, 2020

G8trGr8t said: ↑

SEC urged to investigate coronavirus vaccine maker
An anti-corruption watchdog group is urging the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to investigate top executives at Moderna, the biotech firm developing a promising coronavirus vaccine, for allegedly manipulating the stock market.

"This misconduct was particularly egregious because it involved not only financial fraud and manipulation of the financial markets, but also because it exploited widespread fears surrounding the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic," wrote Kyle Herrig, who heads Accountable.US, in a letter to the SEC. "I strongly urge the SEC to investigate these matters."

The group's concerns center on insider trading activity at Moderna after the company last month announced positive results in Phase 1 trials of its coronavirus vaccine. The news pushed up the company's stock price 30% to an all-time high of $87. In the days following the announcement, Moderna's CEO, other executives and funds controlled by the chairman of its board sold about $90 million worth of company shares.
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"Executive sales are made under pre-planned 10b5-1 plans, which are executed during open trading windows in accordance with the company's insider trading policy," the company said in a statement to CBS MoneyWatch.
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Good luck with that. Every single company in America hides behind their version of the 10b5-1 plan and public announcements are always mysteriously timed before or after these pre-programmed stock trades that executives are not allowed to know the dates of (wink-wink).

And, honestly, if the 4 scumbag senators who profited from MEGA insider information are not in jail already for this, I care little about a couple of company execs who no one will remember in 18 months.

G8trGr8t · Jun 5, 2020

Anything new?

ncargat1 · Jun 9, 2020

Conspiracy folks not going to like this one. Peer reviewed published finally confirming that Remdesivir prevented respiratory disease and limited lung damage in monkeys when administered early enough. Viral load was significantly lower too. This is good news and confirmed through the peer review process, ie no one is going to retract this one.

(Reuters) - Gilead Sciences Inc’s (GILD.O) antiviral drug remdesivir prevented lung disease in macaque monkeys infected with the new coronavirus, according to a study published in the journal Nature on Tuesday.

The findings were first reported in April by the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) as a “preprint,” prior to traditional academic validation provided by a medical journal.

In the study published on Tuesday, 12 monkeys were infected with the new coronavirus, and half of them were given early treatment with remdesivir.

Macaques that received remdesivir did not show signs of respiratory disease and had reduced damage to the lungs. (go.nature.com/2Yj9xq2)

Authors of the study also said the viral load, or amount of virus, in the lungs of remdesivir-treated animals was lower.

The authors suggested that remdesivir should be considered as a treatment as early as possible to prevent progression to pneumonia in COVID-19 patients.
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Gilead's remdesivir prevents lung damage in COVID-19 study on monkeys

ncargat1 · Jun 9, 2020

Know even less than normal about what I am posting in this thread, but it is at least interesting enough to have piqued my curiosity.

India’s Largest Drugmaker Starts Trials for Plant-Based Covid-19 Drug
India’s largest drugmaker will commence Phase II trials on 210 patients across 12 centers in India and the results are expected by October, according to an exchange filing Friday. The therapy, AQCH, was initially developed to treat dengue but has “shown broad antiviral effect” in laboratory tests against the coronavirus, the company said in the filing.

This is the first phytopharmaceutical -- or plant-based -- drug permitted for a clinical trials by the Indian drug regulator to fight the deadly pathogen that’s sickened 6.6 million people globally and has no approved cure or vaccine yet. Sun Pharma’s experimental drug is among the few candidates among the hundreds being tested worldwide to emerge from India, a country better known for making cheap generic versions of drugs developed elsewhere.

Sun Pharma’s shares rose as much as 3.3% on Friday in Mumbai, reaching their highest level since November 2018. The benchmark S&P BSE Sensex advanced as much as 1.3%.

Positive early results in in-vitro and small animal studies gave Sun Pharma the confidence to evaluate this potential treatment option, Dilip Shanghvi, its chairman said in the statement.
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India’s Largest Drugmaker Starts Trials for Plant-Based Covid-19 Drug - BNN Bloomberg

ncargat1 · Jun 10, 2020

Another candidate in an ever growing list of candidates to be used to treat people once known to be infected.

Daiichi Sankyo to develop Nafamostat inhalation therapy for Covid-19
Japanese pharmaceutical company Daiichi Sankyo has signed a basic agreement with the University of Tokyo, Nichi-Iko Pharmaceutical and RIKEN for the research and development (R&D) of a Nafamostat inhalation formulation to treat Covid-19.

Nafamostat is an injectable drug indicated in Japan for the treatment for acute pancreatitis and disseminated intravascular coagulation. According to the data available so far, the drug is adequately safe.

During the first stage of Covid-19 infection, the outer enveloped of SARS-CoV-2 fuses with the host cell surface membrane. Researchers at the University of Tokyo and others have found that Nafamostat could prevent this fusion and block viral entry.

In a statement, the partners said: “Through the partnership, the University of Tokyo, RIKEN, Nichi-Iko and Daiichi Sankyo hope to provide patients with a new treatment option for COVID-19 as early as possible.”
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Daiichi Sankyo to develop Nafamostat inhalation therapy for Covid-19

ncargat1 · Jun 10, 2020

Not sure if this really translated into anything immediately actionable, but interesting research none the less. I just wish I understood it better.....

Decoding COVID-19's Achilles' heel to inspire new treatments
Now, Ernesto Estrada at the University of Zaragoza in Spain has found what could be the Achilles’ heel of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. It's a protein that’s essential for the reproduction of the virus, making it an excellent target for potential drugs, he believes.

The protein is called main protease (Mpro). It's an enzyme that cuts precursor molecules that are translated from viral RNA to make functional viral proteins. Proteases are attractive drug targets because of their vital role in viral replication.

Turns out, while the topological characteristics of the two networks are indeed similar, the transmission of information is not. In fact, SARS-CoV-2's Mpro is 1,900% more sensitive than SARS-CoV Mpro in transmitting tiny structural changes across the whole network, Estrada reported.

Scrutinizing the genetic forces at work in the spread of SARS-CoV-2 is now a priority of researchers around the world, who are stepping up with a variety of ideas for thwarting the virus. Bioengineers at Stanford University, for example, found that a CRISPR system could be deployed to inhibit 90% of coronaviruses, including SARS-CoV-2, by disrupting their genetic code.
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Decoding COVID-19's Achilles' heel to inspire new treatments

ncargat1 · Jun 11, 2020

Quirky kind of a story, and one that seems like could have been "encouraged" at the federal level sooner, but actually glad an American company saw an opportunity to contribute in an area outside of its normal area (and I am sure make a profit....which is a good thing not bad). Because of the scale of Coca-Cola's injection molding operations, they were able to produce over 7 million vials in just a few short days.

With COVID-19 test tubes in shortage, Coca-Cola bottlers offer a solution
A group of independent soda bottle manufacturers working for Coca-Cola has pivoted to help produce the test tubes needed for COVID-19 diagnostic kits.

The efforts include a collaboration between the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to address this particular gap.

The coronavirus pandemic and a skyrocketing demand for diagnostics have strained nearly every piece of the supply chain—from the chemical reagents for processing the virus’s genetic material to the one-piece nasal swabs used to collect samples, as well as sterile containers for transport.

Finding this particular solution took a little luck. Before being heated, shaped and blown into their iconic curves, Coca-Cola bottles begin life as a simple, nondescript, mass-produced plastic tube—which happens to be the perfect size for holding a swab.

Bottler Coca-Cola Consolidated worked with manufacturing cooperative Southeastern Container to produce over 7 million test kit tubes using their injection molding machinery.
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With COVID-19 test tubes in shortage, Coca-Cola bottlers offer a solution

G8trGr8t · Jun 12, 2020

Oral poliovirus vaccine could provide immunity. Different type of vaccine than being produced today but polio and covid are both "positive strand RNA viruses.

Coronavirus: An existing polio vaccine could help fight Covid-19

The oral polio vaccine uses a weakened version of the polio virus. The live attenuated vaccines produce a strong and long-lasting immune response, vaccine experts said. They're slower to manufacture than modern vaccines that just use a piece of genetic material from a virus, and the US and European companies working on coronavirus vaccines are focusing on quicker ways. Gallo co-discovered the human immunodeficiency virus that causes AIDS while Chumakov is associate director for research at the FDA's vaccine division.

It would make sense to at least test it to see if it helps against coronavirus, said Konstantin Chumakov of the FDA and Dr. Robert Gallo of the Institute of Human Virology at the University of Maryland, and colleagues.
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"We propose the use of OPV (oral poliovirus vaccine ) to ameliorate or prevent COVID-19. Both poliovirus and coronavirus are positive-strand RNA viruses; therefore, it is likely that they may induce and be affected by common innate immunity mechanisms," they wrote. " ... Oral poliovirus vaccine in particular, could provide temporary protection against coronavirus disease."
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Can existing live vaccines prevent COVID-19? | Science

ncargat1 · Jun 12, 2020

G8trGr8t said: ↑

Oral poliovirus vaccine could provide immunity. Different type of vaccine than being produced today but polio and covid are both "positive strand RNA viruses.

Coronavirus: An existing polio vaccine could help fight Covid-19

The oral polio vaccine uses a weakened version of the polio virus. The live attenuated vaccines produce a strong and long-lasting immune response, vaccine experts said. They're slower to manufacture than modern vaccines that just use a piece of genetic material from a virus, and the US and European companies working on coronavirus vaccines are focusing on quicker ways. Gallo co-discovered the human immunodeficiency virus that causes AIDS while Chumakov is associate director for research at the FDA's vaccine division.

It would make sense to at least test it to see if it helps against coronavirus, said Konstantin Chumakov of the FDA and Dr. Robert Gallo of the Institute of Human Virology at the University of Maryland, and colleagues.
……………………………….
"We propose the use of OPV (oral poliovirus vaccine ) to ameliorate or prevent COVID-19. Both poliovirus and coronavirus are positive-strand RNA viruses; therefore, it is likely that they may induce and be affected by common innate immunity mechanisms," they wrote. " ... Oral poliovirus vaccine in particular, could provide temporary protection against coronavirus disease."
………...

Can existing live vaccines prevent COVID-19? | Science
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Isn't this the vaccine that is already a lightning rod for the anti-vaxxers? Wasn't this the root of all autism according to them?

G8trGr8t · Jun 12, 2020

ncargat1 said: ↑

Isn't this the vaccine that is already a lightning rod for the anti-vaxxers? Wasn't this the root of all autism according to them?
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No. Oral Polio Virus isn't administered in US. I believe it is a combo vaccine that uses thermasol (sp) as a preservative.

mutz87 · Jun 12, 2020

To echo @G8trGr8t ...

Thimerosal was removed from the measles/mumps/rubella vaccine in 2001.

FWIW, autism diagnoses rates in the US continue to rise.

RFK Jr. is off his rocker on this.

duchen · Jun 12, 2020

I thought I had an oral polio vaccine when I was a kid? Boomer.

ncargat1 · Jun 12, 2020

G8trGr8t said: ↑

No. Oral Polio Virus isn't administered in US. I believe it is a combo vaccine that uses thermasol (sp) as a preservative.
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I guess I could have looked that up on the web, but thanks for answering the question for me.

ncargat1 · Jun 14, 2020

If nothing else, I have learned a little bit about disease treatments. I had not idea, for instance, that monoclonal anti-bodies were already being used to treat diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis (hopefully I got that right). In any case, the Eli Lilly CEO is pretty confident that they will have a treatment ready to go by fall based on 1 or 2 of the monoclonal antibodies currently in clinical trials. Given the likely 3-4 year time horizon for a proven, safe vaccine, if one ever gets developed, the need to find treatments for this virus is imperative.

Exclusive: Lilly COVID-19 treatment could be authorized for use as soon as September - chief scientist

Lilly has already launched human trials with two of the experimental therapies.

The drugs belong to a class of biotech medicines called monoclonal antibodies widely used to treat cancer, rheumatoid arthritis and many other conditions. A monoclonal antibody drug developed against COVID-19 is likely to be more effective than repurposed medicines currently being tested against the virus.

Skovronsky said the therapies - which may also be used to prevent the disease - could beat a vaccine to widespread use as a COVID-19 treatment, if they prove effective.

“For the treatment indication, particularly, this could go pretty fast,” he said in an interview. “If in August or September we’re seeing the people who got treated are not progressing to hospitalization, that would be powerful data and could lead to emergency use authorization.”

“So that puts you in the fall time: September, October, November is not unreasonable,” he said.

Earlier this month, Lilly announced it had initiated patient testing for two separate antibody treatments. One currently designated LY-CoV555 is being developed in partnership with Canadian biotech AbCellera. The other, JS016, it being developed with Chinese drugmaker Shanghai Junshi Biosciences.
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Exclusive: Lilly COVID-19 treatment could be authorized for use as soon as September - chief scientist

ncargat1 · Jun 15, 2020

The hidden roadblocks to having vaccines ready in such a short period of time. Never mind if the vaccine is safe, with everyone rushing to make one, we are going to see huge shortages in raw materials, not to mention skilled employees necessary to make all of this happen. Another reason why if people think that there will be a proven vaccine within a year or so, they are probably going to be disappointed.

With more than 130 vaccines against COVID-19 under development, headlines highlighting their progress swirl at a dizzying pace. But behind the scenes, execs at some of the leading players are intensely focused on the details needed to produce the candidates on a massive scale.

For instance? Sourcing raw materials and assembling the labor force needed to produce hundreds of millions of shots in record time, execs for Moderna and Merck said at BIO’s digital conference this week.

When Moderna started its vaccine program earlier this year, the company anticipated making about 100 million vaccine doses per year, CEO Stéphane Bancel said during a BIO virtual panel on vaccine manufacturing. That’s a “pretty good volume” for most vaccines but “very tiny” compared to the global need amid the current pandemic, he added.

“There are a number of really good manufacturing vaccinologists out there, [such as] scientists and biochemical engineers, but it’s not unlimited,” Markels said. “Ultimately, I think you can build pipes, plants, factories, stirrers, mixers and freezers, but if you don’t have the people who can make it work, you run into trouble.”
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BIO: Moderna, Merck execs see possible speed bumps in COVID-19 vaccine manufacturing

ncargat1 · Jun 15, 2020

FDA finally does the inevitable.....

FDA yanks chloroquine's emergency OK after data show it doesn't work against COVID-19
It's been more than 2 months since President Donald Trump touted malaria drugs as a possible "game-changer" for coronavirus treatment, and the FDA quickly signed off on their emergency use during the pandemic. But now that controlled studies have found no benefit from chloroquine or hydroxychloroquine in COVID-19 patients, the agency is pulling that authorization.

The move is based on a review of data generated since the initial emergency use authorization, FDA chief scientist Denise Hinton wrote in a letter to BARDA official Gary Disbrow. After reviewing recent findings, FDA found the drugs are “unlikely to produce an antiviral effect” at the previously recommended doses.

A clinical trial couldn’t reproduce initial reports of decreased viral shedding, she added. Additionally, a large randomized trial “showed no evidence of benefit for mortality or other outcomes such as hospital length of stay or need for mechanical ventilation of HCQ treatment in hospitalized patients with COVID-19,” Hinton wrote.

But controlled trials have yet to show the benefits described in those early, anecdotal reports. The FDA signed off on an emergency use authorization in late March, but less than a month later, the agency warned that the drugs are too risky to use outside of hospitals. Then, in May, Trump said he had been taking hydroxychloroquine to prevent infection.
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FDA yanks chloroquine's emergency OK after data show it doesn't work against COVID-19

96Gatorcise · Jun 16, 2020

Scientists hail dexamethasone as 'major breakthrough' in treating COVID-19

OklahomaGator · Jun 16, 2020

"Results of trials announced on Tuesday showed dexamethasone, which is used to reduce inflammation in other diseases, reduced death rates by around a third among the most severely ill COVID-19 patients admitted to hospital.

The results suggest the drug should immediately become standard care in patients with severe cases of the pandemic disease, said the researchers who led the trials.

“This is a result that shows that if patients who have COVID-19 and are on ventilators or are on oxygen are given dexamethasone, it will save lives, and it will do so at a remarkably low cost,” said Martin Landray, an Oxford University professor co-leading the trial, known as the RECOVERY trial.

“It’s going to be very hard for any drug really to replace this, given that for less than 50 pounds ($63.26), you can treat eight patients and save a life,” he told reporters in an online briefing."

From the link in the previous post, pretty great news!!!!

ncargat1 · Jun 16, 2020

96Gatorcise said: ↑

Scientists hail dexamethasone as 'major breakthrough' in treating COVID-19
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Finally a small piece of good news in terms of trying to mitigate effects and save lives.
Thanks for the post @96Gatorcise for sharing.

Here is another story with some more stats....

Coronavirus: Dexamethasone proves first life-saving drug
The drug is part of the world's biggest trial testing existing treatments to see if they also work for coronavirus.

It cut the risk of death by a third for patients on ventilators. For those on oxygen, it cut deaths by a fifth.

Had the drug had been used to treat patients in the UK from the start of the pandemic, up to 5,000 lives could have been saved, researchers say.

The drug is given intravenously in intensive care, and in tablet form for less seriously ill patients. So far, the only other drug proven to benefit Covid patients is remdesivir, an antiviral treatment which has been used for Ebola.
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Life-saving coronavirus drug 'major breakthrough'

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