Celltrion's Regkirona found effective against variants in tests

Celltrion said Friday that animal tests of its Regkirona Covid-19 treatment have produced meaningful results confirming its effectiveness against the Delta variant.

It injected Regkirona on a total of 49 mice infected with the Delta variant, and found that the treatment significantly reduced the viral titers and prevented the weight losses.

The mice injected with Regkirona showed a 100 percent survival rate while all mice in the control group died, according to Celltrion.

The result came even when low doses of treatment had been injected to the mice.

The Korean pharmaceutical company already announced the effectiveness of Regkirona against South Africa’s Beta and Brazil’s Gamma.

Celltrion said it has also conducted a test using a pseudovirus of the Lambda variant, the new Covid-19 variant that is spreading rapidly in Peru, and found that Regkirona demonstrates strong neutralizing capacity against the variant.

Currently, Celltrion is working with Durham, North Carolina-based Inhalon Biopharma to develop an inhalable form of Regkirona, which allows for the conveying of the treatment directly into the airways using an inhaler. It will make delivery more convenient, according to Celltrion.

“Regkirona’s efficacy has been proven against the major variants of Covid-19, as well as the recent Delta and Lambda variants,” said a spokesperson for Celltrion. “Celltrion will continuously test the neutralizing capacity of Regkirona against any new variants that may occur in the future, as well as exert all efforts to develop the inhaled version of the treatment in order to offer various options to Covid-19 patients.”

BY SARAH CHEA [chea.sarah@joongang.co.kr]