OurCrowd portfolio company SaNOtize says that a UK clinical trial has delivered solid results as COVID-19 treatment. A self-administered nasal spray is said to reduce the viral load by more than 95% in 24 hours and by 99% in 72 hours. Trial results indicated that treatment accelerated clearance of SARS-CoV-2 by a factor of 16-fold versus a placebo.
The trial evaluated 79 confirmed cases of COVID-19, the majority were said to be heavily-infected with the UK variants. No adverse events were recorded in the group. The results of the UK trial are said to corroborate the information gathered from SaNOtize’s earlier Phase 2 trials in Canada and independent lab tests at Utah State University’s Antiviral Research Institute.
SaNOtize, Ashford and St Peter’s Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust in Surrey, UK, and Berkshire and Surrey Pathology Services, UK, said the results of clinical trials represents a safe and effective antiviral treatment that could prevent the transmission of COVID-19, shorten its course, and reduce the severity of symptoms and damage in those already infected.
SaNOtize’s Nitric Oxide Nasal Spray (NONS) is said to be the only novel therapeutic treatment so far proven to reduce viral load in humans that is not a monoclonal antibody treatment.
NONS is designed to kill the virus in the upper airways, preventing it from incubating and spreading to the lungs. It is based on nitric oxide (NO), a natural nanomolecule produced by the human body with proven anti-microbial properties shown to have a direct effect on SARS-CoV-2. The pharmacology, toxicity, and safety data for NO use in humans has been well-established for decades, according to the company.
“I expect this to be a major advance in the global battle against the devastating human impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Dr. Stephen Winchester, Consultant Medical Virologist and Chief Investigator of this NHS Clinical Trial. “This simple portable nasal spray could be highly effective in the treatment of COVID-19 and reducing onward transmission. Our trial included patients with a variant of concern and high viral loads yet still demonstrated significant reductions in the levels of SARS-CoV-2, which could be critical in supporting vaccines, preventing future outbreaks and safely reopening economies. Simply stated, I think this could be revolutionary.”
SaNOtize is currently seeking emergency use authorization in the UK and Canada.
Dr. Chris Miller, Chief Science Officer and co-founder of SaNOtize, says that NONS destroys the virus and halts viral replication in the nasal cavity.
“This is significant because viral load has been linked to infectivity and poor outcomes,” said Dr. Miller. “There is currently a lack of an antiviral therapy that is effective against COVID-19 and its variants, can prevent or shorten the course of the disease, reduce damage, lower the severity of COVID-19, and can be made widely and readily available to the public. This is what makes NONS unique and enables it to stand alone from any other novel therapeutic application.”
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