AstraZeneca said a late-stage trial failed to provide evidence that the company’s Covid-19 antibody therapy protected people who had contact with an infected person from the disease, a small setback in its efforts to find alternatives to vaccines.
The U.S. health regulator authorized a lower dose of Regeneron Pharmaceuticals’ Covid-19 antibody cocktail that can be given by injection, a move that could ease logistical challenges stemming from administering a higher dose intravenously.
India gave emergency use authorization for a Covid-19 antibody drug cocktail developed by Roche and Regeneron, expanding the company’s arsenal of drugs to battle a massive second wave of infections. The decision was taken based on data filed with the U.S. regulators and the scientific opinion of a European regulatory panel, Roche’s India distribution partner for the drug, Cipla, said on May 5.
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals announced results from the company’s Phase III trial of recently infected asymptomatic Covid-19 patients for the REGEN-COV (casirivimab with imdevimab) antibody cocktail.
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. said initial data from an ongoing study of the company’s experimental antibody cocktail for use in hospitalized Covid-19 patients requiring low-flow oxygen show the therapy was sufficiently effective to warrant continuing the trial.
U.S. hospitals have been slow to embrace Covid-19 antibody drugs from Eli Lilly and Co. and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. that were authorized to reduce the risk of hospitalization, U.S. officials said.
The U.S. government will start distributing Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc.’s newly authorized Covid-19 antibody combination on Nov. 24, beginning with more than 30,000 treatment courses, a health official said.
