Pfizer doses its first patient in Phase 2/3 trial for COVID-19 daily pill

Pfizer revealed on Wednesday that it gave its first dose to a patient in its Phase 2/3 clinical trial examining the effectiveness of an orally administered drug designed to fight COVID-19.

CEO Albert Bourla wrote on Wednesday evening on Twitter that “success against COVID19 will likely require both vaccines [and] treatments ”and said the pharmaceutical giant has launched a“ Phase 2/3 study of our oral antiviral candidate – specially designed to fight SARS-CoV-2 – in non-hospitalized, low-risk adults ”.

The drug, which has been dubbed PF-07321332, is designed for COVID-19 patients who have not been hospitalized but have symptoms of the virus and are at low risk of it progressing into serious illness.

The randomized, double-blind trial will enroll approximately 1,140 participants, who will receive either PF-07321332 or oral placebo every 12 hours for five days, according to a press release from Pfizer (pdf).

“Protease inhibitors, like PF-07321332, are designed to block the activity of the main protease enzyme that the coronavirus needs to replicate,” the statement said. “Co-administration with a low dose of ritonavir is expected to help slow the metabolism, or breakdown, of PF-07321332 so that it remains in the body for longer periods at higher concentrations, thus continuously working to help fight the virus. “

Currently, the only three COVID-19 drugs approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are vaccines manufactured by Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson.

Earlier this week, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the effectiveness of vaccines in keeping people out of hospital had plummeted. In an update, the agency said that against the Delta variant, the effectiveness of vaccines in keeping people out of hospital was between 75% and 95% in July, down from 97% in June.

It comes as the American Medical Association (AMA) has called for an “immediate end” to the use of ivermectin to treat COVID-19, and doctors stop prescribing it after the podcast host and comedian Joe Rogan has confirmed that he has taken the drug in combination with other drugs to treat COVID-19.

“We are alarmed by reports that outpatient prescribing and dispensing of ivermectin has increased 24-fold since before the pandemic and has increased exponentially in recent months,” WADA said Thursday.

Ivermectin has been called a “horse dewormer” by some mainstream media, but the drug has been used for decades to treat river blindness and roundworm infection in humans. During the pandemic, some doctors prescribed it for COVID-19, and several Indian states authorized the use of the drug to treat the virus earlier this year.

Variations of the drug are given to pets and livestock, and federal officials have warned people against taking animal ivermectin for COVID-19, saying it could result in hospitalization or even death. In veterinary medicine, the drug is designed to prevent and treat heartworm.

COVID-19 is the disease caused by the virus of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party).