Pharma giants, scientists race against time to find cure for Covid-19

As the world works to vaccinate populations against Covid-19, with billions of jabs administered so far, the search for treatment options has proven to be trickier.

It is almost two years into the pandemic, but there is no cure yet for Covid-19. The handful of treatments being used now largely treat only Covid-19 symptoms or prevent the illness from becoming more severe.

Of the various therapeutics being studied, some are showing hopeful signs of combating the virus, but many are still in various stages of research.

It is a race against time for major pharmaceutical firms and scientists worldwide, including in China, South Korea, Japan and India.

Finding effective Covid-19 treatments is crucial because the pandemic is far from over, say medical experts, noting that treatments are just as important as vaccines.

"Vaccines and treatments have different functions: vaccines prevent the disease whereas treatments act once the person gets sick.

"Vaccines are useless once the disease has started. Treatments cannot prevent the disease in the long term," Dr Anne Gatignol, a professor at the McGill University's department of medicine, told The Straits Times.

According to a Covid-19 treatment tracker by FasterCures, which is under think-tank Milken Institute, there are 331 treatments being studied right now.

While a "one-stop" cure has yet to be found, several treatments are currently used worldwide. These include the antiviral medication remdesivir, the steroid dexamethasone, and monoclonal antibodies, which are laboratory-made proteins that mimic natural antibodies to fight off infection.

However, these drugs are not "one size fits all", said Dr Shmuel Shoham, an infectious diseases expert at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.

"Right now, there isn't a pill which one can take at home. But once this is found, it will change things," he said, noting that such a treatment can be taken in the early stages of infection, and when combined with vaccines, could even bring Covid-19 mortality rates to zero.

Currently, some front runners in the antiviral experimental pill race include Merck & Co and Ridgeback Biotherapeutics' molnupiravir, Pfizer's PF-07321332, and AT-527 by Roche and Atea Pharmaceuticals.

Countries are also advancing in their search for domestically developed Covid-19 medications, with a number of potential cures entering late-stage clinical trials.

One antiviral pill developed by Japan's Shionogi & Co began phase 2/3 clinical trials this week, and could receive approval by the year end. The drug, S-217622, which is meant for patients with mild symptoms, inhibits the activity of an enzyme needed for the virus to replicate.

In South Korea, a monoclonal antibody treatment by local pharmaceutical giant Celltrion received full approval last month, following emergency approval in February.

The drug Regkirona, given via intravenous infusion, is used for high-risk patients with non-severe symptoms and all patients with moderate and serious symptoms. An inhalable form of the drug is also in the works.

Meanwhile, biopharmaceutical firm GeneOne Life Science got approval last month to start phase 2 clinical trials in South Korea for its oral treatment GLS-1027.

A total of 11 oral drugs are being developed in South Korea, including those originally made to treat illnesses such as malaria and pancreatitis.

Hong Kong has also backed research by medical schools. In April last year, the government approved HK$111 million (S$19.4 million) in funding for studies on Covid-19 vaccines, novel antiviral drugs and effective therapeutic interventions.

There are also studies on repurposing medication for Covid-19, which include interferon beta-1b and clofazimine, said University of Hong Kong's Professor Ivan Hung, who is involved in some studies. The two drugs are currently used for treating relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis and leprosy respectively.

He added that Hong Kong researchers are also developing novel intranasal Covid-19 vaccines.

What is lacking in therapeutics now are effective and specific antiviral drugs that can be orally administered safely to a large number of infected and exposed individuals at an early stage, Dr Leung Chi Chiu of the Hong Kong Medical Association told ST, adding that this would complement vaccines in controlling the pandemic.

In India, scientists have come up with an affordable "adjunct therapy" called drug 2-deoxy-D-glucose or 2-DG, which costs about 1,000 rupees (S$18). It was developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation with Hyderabad-based pharma company Dr Reddy's Lab.

The drug, which comes in powder form, was initially developed to treat cancer but has now been approved to treat Covid-19 in India.

Health experts, however, question its efficacy, as data about its performance in human trials is not yet published. It was also not approved for cancer treatment even after prolonged use.

Meanwhile, China is touting what could be the world's first Covid-19 treatment made from the plasma of vaccinated individuals.

Developed by Beijing Tiantan Biological Products and administered by China National Biotec Group (CNBG), a Sinopharm subsidiary, the drug was approved for clinical trials in late August.

"The drug can have therapeutic effects on people with moderate or severe illnesses," CNBG vice-president Zhu Jingjin told state broadcaster CCTV last month.

In China, hospitals have also been adding traditional Chinese medicine into treatment regimes which involve the use of ingredients such as apricot seeds and licorice root.