Lilly's neutralizing antibody bamlanivimab (LY-CoV555) prevented COVID-19 at nursing homes in the BLAZE-2 trial
Bamlanivimab (LY-CoV555) significantly reduced the risk of contracting symptomatic COVID-19 among residents and staff of long-term care facilities, Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE: LLY) announced. The Phase 3 BLAZE-2 COVID-19 prevention trial - conducted in partnership with the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and the COVID-19 Prevention Network (CoVPN) - enrolled residents and staff at skilled nursing and assisted living facilities, commonly referred to as nursing homes, across the U.S.
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Obesity, impaired metabolic health and COVID-19
In a Nature Reviews Endocrinology article authors from the German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD) highlight the interconnection of obesity and impaired metabolic health with the severity of COVID-19. First, they provide information about the independent relationships of obesity, disproportionate fat distribution and impaired metabolic health with the severity of COVID-19.
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Pfizer and BioNTech publish results of study showing COVID-19 vaccine elicits antibodies that neutralize pseudovirus bearing the SARS-CoV-2 U.K. strain spike protein
Today, Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) and BioNTech SE (Nasdaq: BNTX) announced results from an in vitro study that provides additional data on the capability of sera from individuals immunized with the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine BNT162b2 to neutralize the SARS-CoV-2 U.K. strain, also known as B.1.1.7 lineage or VOC 202012/01. The results were published on the preprint server bioRxiv and submitted to a peer-reviewed journal.
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Roche confirms US government agreement to purchase additional doses of Regeneron's casirivimab and imdevimab
Roche (SIX: RO, ROG; OTCQX: RHHBY) confirmed that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Department of Defense (DOD) will purchase additional supply of Regeneron's casirivimab and imdevimab antibody cocktail for use in non-hospitalised COVID-19 patients as part of Operation Warp Speed.
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COVID-19 has multiple faces
According to current studies, the COVID-19 disease which is caused by the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus comprises at least five different variants. These differ in how the immune system responds to the infection. Researchers from the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) and the University of Bonn, together with other experts from Germany, Greece and the Netherlands, present these findings in the scientific journal "Genome Medicine".
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Metformin use reduces risk of death for patients with COVID-19 and diabetes
Use of the diabetes drug metformin - before a diagnosis of COVID-19 - is associated with a threefold decrease in mortality in COVID-19 patients with Type 2 diabetes, according to a racially diverse study at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Diabetes is a significant comorbidity for COVID-19.
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Vir Biotechnology and GSK announce NHS-supported AGILE study to evaluate VIR-7832 in the early treatment of COVID-19
Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (Nasdaq: VIR) and GlaxoSmithKline plc (LSE/NYSE: GSK) announced an agreement with the U.K.-based AGILE initiative to evaluate VIR-7832 in patients with mild to moderate COVID-19 in a Phase 1b/2a clinical trial. VIR-7832 is a neutralising COVID-19 antibody that preclinical data suggests has two distinguishing properties: an enhanced ability to clear infected cells and the potential to enhance virus-specific T cell function, which could help treat and/or prevent COVID-19 infection.
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New England Journal of Medicine publishes COVID-19 treatment trial results
A clinical trial involving COVID-19 patients hospitalized at UT Health San Antonio and University Health, among roughly 100 sites globally, found that a combination of the drugs baricitinib and remdesivir reduced time to recovery, according to results published Dec. 11 in the New England Journal of Medicine.
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Bayer transforms pharma business through breakthrough innovation in healthcare
At its virtual Pharma Media Day, Bayer presented exciting progress in transforming its pharmaceutical business with breakthrough innovation in healthcare that will significantly help patients suffering from conditions that are currently still difficult to treat. The company has recently heavily invested in external innovation with an unprecedented number of more than 25 collaboration agreements and acquisitions.
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Valneva in advanced discussions with European Commission to supply up to 60 million doses of inactivated, adjuvanted COVID-19 vaccine candidate
Valneva SE, a specialty vaccine company focused on prevention of infectious diseases with significant unmet medical need, announced it is in advanced discussions with the European Commission (EC) for the supply of up to 60 million doses of its COVID-19 vaccine, VLA2001. VLA2001 is currently the only inactivated vaccine candidate in clinical trials against COVID-19 in Europe.
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