American pharmaceutical firm Eli Lilly and Company has announced that it has started a third-phase trial of its COVID-19 antiviral drug known as LY-CoV555 on nursing home residents.
The study is being conducted in partnership with the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and will involve around 2,400 participants.
The study participants will include vulnerable residents and staff members at nursing homes and other long-term care facilities that have recently been diagnosed with COVID-19. The participants will receive a single dose of LY-CoV555, which is a monoclonal antibody treatment directed against the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.
“COVID-19 has had a devastating impact on nursing home residents. We’re working as fast as we can to create medicines that might stop the spread of the virus to these vulnerable individuals,” said Daniel Skovronsky, Eli Lilly’s chief scientific officer and president of Lilly Research Laboratories, in a Monday news release.
“We are grateful to the NIAID team for their exceptional partnership on this innovative trial and we are deeply appreciative of the care facilities, their staff and the many residents who will be participating in this important study,” Skovronsky added.
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