Potential antiviral drug COVID-19 is effective in hamster study, according to NIH
An experimental drug for the treatment of COVID-19, which can be taken orally, is now being tested in humans after showing early promise and effectiveness in hamsters.
A potential antiviral drug COVID-19 shows early promise and effectiveness in hamsters, according to a new study from the National Institutes of Health.
Results showed that the experimental antiviral drug MK-4482 ‘significantly reduced levels of virus and disease damage in the lungs of hamsters treated for SARS-CoV-2 infection’, according to a statement.
The experimental drug, which is only delivered orally, is now being tested in human clinical trials. Remdesivir, another antiviral drug already approved by the US Food and Drug Administration, can only be given intravenously.
Scientists have said that MK-4482 appears to be effective when given up to 12 hours before, or 12 hours after, the hamsters were injected with the coronavirus.
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The latest study involved three groups of hamsters: a pre-infection treatment group, a post-treatment group and an untreated control group. For the two treatment groups, scientists gave the hamsters MK-4482 orally every 12 hours for three days. Results showed that the hamsters had 100 times less infectious viruses in their lungs than the control group and fewer lesions in the lungs than the control group.
The US Food and Drug Administration has approved Remdesivir, an antiviral drug, only for treatment with COVID-19. It is recommended for patients in a hospital who need supplemental oxygen. In addition, the agency granted emergency use for nine other COVID-19 treatments.
RELATED: Global COVID-19 death toll reaches 3 million people
The emergency-approved drugs, administered intravenously and manufactured by Regeneron Pharmaceuticals and Eli Lily, contain concentrated doses of laboratory-produced antibodies to fight COVID-19 and are aimed at people at high risk for serious symptoms or to be admitted to hospital.
Michigan will expand the use of COVID-19 treatment in hopes of significantly reducing its increasing number of hospitalizations and deaths, state officials announced last week amid efforts to lower the country’s highest infection rate.
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said treatment with Remdesivir could save lives, adding that it “most likely” helped then-President Donald Trump when he was infected last fall. Qualifying people – an estimated 30% of the infected population – include the elderly and people with an existing or underlying health risk.
According to Johns Hopkins, more than 31 million Americans have tested positive for COVID-19 since the pandemic began in March 2020. Since then, more than 567,000 Americans have died from the virus.
RELATED: Half of American adults have now received at least one shot of COVID-19 vaccine, says CDC
Half of all adults in the U.S. received at least one COVID-19 shot, the government announced Sunday. It was another milestone in the country’s largest vaccination campaign ever, but leaves more work to be done to convince skeptical Americans to roll up their sleeves.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention received nearly 130 million people aged 18 and over at least one dose of vaccine, or 50.4% of the total adult population. Nearly 84 million adults, or about 32.5% of the population, are fully vaccinated.
Associated Press and Megan Ziegler contributed to this report. This story was reported from Los Angeles.