Marinomed Biotech has announced new funding from the Austrian Research Promotion Agency (FFG) for development of a Carragelose inhalation solution for COVID-19 pneumonia. The funding is part of the FFG’s “Emergency Call to research COVID-19 in the wake of the outbreak of SARS-CoV-2.”
Carragelose is a polymer derived from red seaweed that has shown activity against a range of viruses, including the common cold. Carragelose-based antiviral nasal sprays have been approved and are marketed in a number of countries in Europe and Asia, as well as in Canada.
The company plans to use the funding for a Phase 1 study in healthy volunteers followed by a proof of concept study conducted at the Medical University of Vienna to evaluate the effectiveness of the inhalation solution in patients with viral pneumonia. According to the company, a previous study conducted in 2014 demonstrated that treatment with Carragelose reduced the duration of symptoms by 3 days in patients infected with a coronavirus compared to placebo.
Marinomed Chief Scientific Officer Eva Prieschl-Grassauer said, “A causal therapy directly in the lungs can shorten the duration of the disease and thus hospitalization for patients suffering from viral pneumonia, reduce the number of patients in intensive care and thus bring enormous benefits for patients and the health system. . . . Due to the broad effectiveness of Carragelose, we are confident that we can also achieve good results with the current pandemic coronavirus.”
Read the Marinomed Biotech press release.
