Interferon beta-1a may help patients with COVID-19 recover faster

Lancet Respiratory Medicine I announced the clinical results yesterday trial Inhaled immune response protein interferon beta-1a has been shown to reduce the chances of hospitalized COVID-19 patients becoming seriously ill or dying from infections.

A double-blind, randomized controlled trial conducted at nine hospitals in the United Kingdom enrolled 98 patients recruited between March 30 and May 30. Every day for 14 days.

Patients receiving SNG001 were twice as likely to have clinical improvement on day 15 or 16 as patients receiving placebo (21 of 48). [44%] vs11 / 50 [22%]). At the start of the study, 37 patients (77%) in the SNG001 group and 29 (58%) in the placebo group needed oxygen supplementation.

Do 11 of 50 patients (22%) who received placebo become more severe and require mechanical ventilation compared to 6 of 48 (13%) who received SNG001? Died between the first dose and 15 or 16 days. All patients in the SNG001 group survived and 3 in the placebo group died.

The odds of discharge by day 28 were not significantly different between the two groups, 39/48 (81%) in the SNG001 group and 36/48 (75%) in the placebo group. Twenty-six (54%) of patients who received SNG001 and 30 (60%) who received placebo experienced adverse events during treatment, the most common of which was headache.

Secondary analysis showed that patients with SNG001 were more than three times more likely to recover than those who received placebo on day 28, as defined by the resumption of their ability to resume normal activity. ..

Strengthening lung defense

Interferon beta is a protein that regulates the immune response to viral infections such as COVID-19, while coronavirus suppresses its release. SNG001, delivered directly to the lungs after inhalation, has been tested in the treatment of asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, but has not been approved for indication. The injectable form of interferon beta has been approved to treat other conditions, including multiple sclerosis.

University of Southampton co-author Tom Wilkinson, MBBS, PhD, Massachusetts said in Lancet Press release Its interferon beta may restore the immune response of the lungs and accelerate recovery from COVID-19.

“Inhaled interferon beta-1a provides high local levels of immune protein and enhances lung defense rather than targeting specific viral mechanisms,” Wilkinson said. “This is an additional benefit of treating COVID-19 infections when they occur in parallel with infections with other respiratory viruses such as influenza and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) that may be encountered in winter. May bring about. “

The research group is currently evaluating the efficacy of interferon beta-1a in prehospital coronavirus patients. The authors state that protein studies in patients on ventilators require delivery methods other than inhalation.

Safety profile required

so Commentary In the same journal, Hospitalo de Paris’s Nathan Peiffer-Smadja, MD, PhD and Yazdan Yazdanpanah, MD, PhD show that interferon beta has antiviral effects against other coronaviruses in vitro and in animal studies, including: It states that it shows. Those that cause severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS).

But they warn of early results from another result that has not been peer reviewed Survey, SOLIDARITY / DisCoVeRy Randomized clinical trials have not shown that subcutaneously injectable interferon beta-1a is effective in treating COVID-19 patients, 8% of whom require a ventilator. They said the lack of effect may be due to the fact that subcutaneous administration does not directly target the lungs like inhalation.

Peiffer-Smadja and Yazdanpanah also warn that interferon beta-1a can cause a dangerous inflammatory response in patients with severe COVID-19. They also stated that the trial had no effect on the time to hospital release or death. This means that larger randomized clinical trials will be needed to confirm the results.

“The safety of sprayed interferon beta-1a will be of particular interest, as there is no marketing approval for the indication for interferon spraying,” the comment author wrote. “Future studies need to evaluate the effect of interferon beta 1a on inflammatory biomarkers and analyze virological data to better characterize the underlying pathophysiology of the drug. Interferon beta 1a is COVID. It is also worth investigating whether it affects the long-term symptoms of -19, especially lung symptoms. “