SINGAPORE: A Singapore-based company will start human clinical trials next week for a treatment that could slow down the progression of COVID-19 in patients, help them recover faster, and provide temporary protection against the coronavirus.
Tychan may become the first firm to start its human clinical trial in Singapore, although efforts in developing an antibody-based treatment For those who already require oxygen, the hope is that the drug will prevent them from needing a ventilator, and for patients who are already on ventilators, that they could go off the ventilators, he added.
The drug will also be evaluated for its potential to provide temporary protection against infection with SARS-CoV-2, Tychan said. The potential treatment was developed in partnership with the Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Health, the Economic Development Board and other Government agencies as part of a whole-of-Government effort.
“It has also successfully completed pre-clinical safety studies and other regulatory requirements, including a three-week drug stability test. These were all completed in less than four months before this first-in-human infusion,” Tychan said.