Celltrion announced on April 2 that it has completed the first stage of development for an antiviral treatment to prevent the rapid spread of COVID-19 around the world.
Suh Jung-jin, chairman of Celltrion Group, promised at an online press conference on April 23 that he would share the news with the public on any progress the company makes to help relieve the public’s concern over the world-shattering event.
In collaboration with the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Celltrion began screening its second candidate antibody group today. The work is expected to take about two weeks to complete.
Celltrion researchers expect a promising outcome from the screening processes as the previously identified antibodies have shown a higher binding affinity to an antigen compared to those used in the company’s past antiviral treatment projects.
Once the most potent candidate antibodies are proven to neutralize the virus, the company will start the mass production of the therapeutics to be used for clinical studies, and non-clinical studies will be conducted simultaneously.
Celltrion is committed to making this therapeutic antibody available for human use in the shortest period of time by mobilizing all human resources available in the process.
"Based on global-level research and development capabilities of antibody drugs, the entire team is working hard to find the best candidate material for human clinical administration in July," a source from Celltrion said. "We will proceed with the clinical trials at a faster pace than other pharmaceutical companies to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus, including the U.S. and Europe."
