The plans of the pharmacists in the fight against coronavirus for 2022

By Alex Knapp

Last week saw the 40th annual JP Morgan Healthcare Conference, one of the biggest events of the year in the field of medicine. The Conference, which took place online this year, was attended by hundreds of companies in the industry, which presented their achievements in 2021 and what they expect for 2022.

The coronavirus pandemic dominated every discussion, as several companies attending the conference were directly involved in developing treatments, vaccines and tests for covid-19.

Vaccines specific to each mutation and in combination

Her CEO Pfizer, Referring to the large number of covid-19 mutations – Albert Bourla stated that “we are dealing with a virus that is much more difficult to treat than we initially thought”. Therefore, he added, his company is working on an upgrade of its existing vaccine to treat Omicron and other mutations. Details of the drug will be available in March, and Bourla said Pfizer is already changing production lines for the upgraded vaccine. For his part, BioNTech CEO Uğur Şahin echoed many of Bourla’s comments on the existing vaccine that the two companies have jointly developed. Şahin also referred to the artificial intelligence system used by BioNTech to sound the alarm about the emergence of new variants of the virus, which, he said, managed to detect some worrying mutations before the World Health Organization.

THE Novavax began delivering its own coronavirus vaccine last quarter and the first doses were given in December. The company has shipped 10 million installments to Indonesia, while another 40 million installments have been shipped for delivery. Novavax is expected to deliver 27 million doses to the EU this quarter and more than 40 million doses next year. CEO Stanley Erck noted that this flow indicates demand that exceeds any reservation about the vaccine, focusing on the fact that the Novavax formulation is based on more “mature” technology. “People want a safe and effective protein-based alternative,” he said, adding that the Novavax vaccine could be approved for use in the United States in February. Novavax is currently conducting clinical trials to develop a “2 in 1” booster dose of covid-19 and influenza at the same time.

Stephane Bancel, CEO Μoderna, stated that his company delivered 807 million doses of the vaccine against covid-19 in 2021, which brought it revenues of more than $ 17 billion. The company’s next big step is its effort to develop a combination vaccine to treat multiple respiratory viruses together. He is currently conducting clinical trials for a covid-19 and influenza vaccine and plans to upgrade it in the coming years to include respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and the common cold. “We believe it is possible,” Bancel said.

More antibodies, antiviral drugs and treatments are coming

In 2021, the Regeneron delivered 2.8 million doses of the antibody cocktail it uses to treat the coronavirus and generated $ 5.8 billion in U.S. sales, said company CEO Leonard Schleifer. The cocktail is less effective against Omicron, but Regeneron plans to launch its – recently approved – monoclonal antibodies against the new mutation this quarter. “We have begun to increase the scale of production,” added George Yancopoulos, the company’s scientific director. Regeneron’s main concern in the coming years will be to provide antibodies to immunocompromised patients for whom vaccines are less effective.

THE Adagio Therapeutics develops an anti-covid-19 antibody that targets mutations in the virus. According to the preliminary data of the company, this treatment is also effective against Omicron. At this stage, Adagio detects the appropriate dose of its antibody for patients and has discontinued clinical trials to align with regulatory authorities to continue the procedure. “The good news is that we now have a lot of data at our disposal,” said Tillman Gerngross, CEO of the company.

THE Pfizer announced at the Conference that it was preparing to produce 120 million pills of the antiviral treatment for coronavirus, Paxlovid. Quantity that exceeds the pre-orders it has so far. Albert Bourla said the company estimates that governments will order large quantities of Paxlovid for reserve purposes.

GSK and For focused on the treatment of covid-19 antibodies they jointly developed: sotrovimab. In 2021, the companies sold over 750,000 doses of the treatment, which is still effective against Omicron, and plan to produce 2 million doses in the first half of 2022. The companies intend to apply for an emergency license. injectable version of sotrovimab, which will facilitate its distribution, as it is currently administered intravenously. Vir is also working to develop a “new generation” antibody to coronavirus, a vaccine that will treat all mutations in the virus, as well as a small molecule drug to treat multiple respiratory infections, including influenza, covid-19. and respiratory syncytial virus.

Demand for the tests will continue

Her CEO Abbott, Robert Ford, stated that his company now produces over 100 million rapid tests per month, while it has the potential to increase its production. The company estimates that demand for the tests will slow down as soon as the current pandemic wave passes, where the mutated Omicron strain predominates, but it will still exist, especially from schools that will use rapid tests as tools to control the epidemic. but also to be able to function for life.

Trevor Martin, its CEO Mammoth Biosciences, noted that the performance of CRISPR diagnostic tests – which detect a RNA genetic sequence unique to SARS-CoV-2 – is comparable to molecular ones, except that CRISPRs are faster and cheaper. The company said it is close to bringing CRISPR technology to patients. “We have focused our efforts on getting these tests out of the lab and bringing them into patients’ lives,” Martin said.

THE Quidel, the maker of the QuickVue test, said at the conference that it saw a 10-fold increase in sales – through Walgreens and CVS – in the last week of December compared to the first week of the same month. The company plans to increase its production capacity in order to meet demand and deliver 100 million tests to the US government. Quidel estimates that the tests will continue to be part of its productive activity in the future. “We expect the coronavirus to continue to circulate,” said CEO Douglas Bryant.

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