CP-COV03, a niclosamide-based oral antiviral drug, under study as possible cure for COVID-19 variants

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Hyundai Bioscience

07 Dec, 2021, 14:00 GMT

  • An antiviral drug to be combined with dexamethasone is finally found
  • An oral antiviral drug that may substitute remdesivir
  • CP-COV03 raises efficacy up 2.1 times when combined with dexamethasone

SEOUL, South Korea, Dec. 7, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Experimental results have been published for the first time showing that an antiviral drug containing niclosamide, an anthelmintic, in combination with dexamethasone, an anti-inflammatory drug, produces a 'synergistic effect' for severe COVID-19 patients. There is a growing possibility that a combination therapy for severe COVID-19 patients, for which there is currently no suitable treatment, may be developed for the first time in Korea.

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Jin-ho Choi, Science Advisor to Hyundai Bioscience

Hyundai Bioscience recently conducted an efficacy testing at KRIBB (Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology) on COVID-19-infected hamsters. It was announced on December 7th that as a result of oral administration of CP-COV03, an oral treatment for COVID-19, combined with dexamethasone, the therapeutic effect was found to be 2.1 times higher than that of dexamethasone alone.

At a press conference held at the Korea Press Center on the 7th, Hyundai Bioscience announced the results of these experiments and decided to provide related data to the medical community. This is the first study result that confirmed the synergistic effect of an oral antiviral drug with dexamethasone as COVID-19 combo treatment.

CP-COV03 is a broad-spectrum antiviral drug candidate, developed by Hyundai Bioscience to treat COVID-19. Its active pharmaceutical ingredient is niclosamide, an anthelmintic drug, and is expected to work on various viral diseases including COVID-19 and its mutations as well as influenza.

CP-COV03 was originally developed with the advanced drug delivery system (DDS) technology by CNPharm, a major shareholder of Hyundai Bioscience. It is a 'host-directed' drug that focuses on the host cell, unlike existing vaccines and antiviral drugs that target the virus. Niclosamide received international attention after COVID-19 broke out, since its efficacy against mutations of COVID-19 has been proven through multiple researches.

Hyundai Bioscience, emphasizing on multi-target capability of niclosamide that may cure COVID-19 variants, plans to expand the use of CP-COV03 to treat even other viral diseases such as the flu.

If successfully approved, CP-COV03 is expected to be a game-changer drug in the war against virus of the century as it is inexpensive and easy to mass-produce. It can be administered to patients with dual or multiple viral diseases such as COVID-19 and influenza at an affordable price.

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