India Pharma Outlook Team | Tuesday, 26 April 2022
Bengaluru-based Bugworks said it has started work on antiviral medication that can be potentially used against single-strand RNA viruses such as Coronavirus and Flavivirus. The experimental drug called VIROX-1 will be tested for both intravenous as well as oral formulation. In a recent interview to ET, Bugworks - chief scientific officer - Santanu Datta said the decision to initiate a programme on developing the potential antiviral was taken a year ago during Covid.
"It was an emotional decision, we are working on it, it's still in a very early stage," Datta said.Datta said the potential antiviral is in an early pre-clinical (in vitro) stage. The hunt for safe and effective Covid antivirals that can be used against Covid is on.
Currently Pfizer's Paxlovid and MSD-Ridgeback Biotherapeutics' are two available options. Antivirals unlike monoclonal antibodies are capable of destroying viruses irrespective of mutations.
Along with antiviral - Bugworks is focused on advancing its lead molecule BWC0977 which is currently in Phase 1 clinical trial in Australia and is targeted against antimicrobial resistance (AMR) Datta said he expects the Phase-1 trial to end by November 2022. "In the ongoing Phase-1 it is getting tested on healthy volunteers, in phase-2 it will be tested on the patients with types of infections," Datta said.
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