On Friday, the UK’s drugs authority authorised the medicinal use of the country’s first medication to prevent and cure COVID-19, which was developed using man-made antibodies.
According to the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), Ronapreve is the first monoclonal antibody combination medication approved for use in the prevention and treatment of acute COVID-19 infection in the UK.
Monoclonal antibodies are man-made proteins that function in the immune system like natural human antibodies.
Sajid Javid, the UK Health Secretary, stated, “This is excellent news from the independent medicines regulator and means the UK has authorised its first treatment tailored especially for COVID-19.”
“This treatment will be a significant addition to our armoury to tackle COVID-19 – in addition to our world-renowned vaccination programme and life-saving therapeutics dexamethasone and tocilizumab,” he said.
Ronapreve is an injection or infusion that operates at the lining of the respiratory system, where it binds securely to the coronavirus and stops it from getting access to the cells of the respiratory system. It was developed by Regeneron in the United States and Roche in Switzerland.
The British government has stated that the priority now is to work quickly with the NHS to ensure that the new therapy is available to patients as soon as feasible. The deployment procedure will be spelled out in the following weeks.
Clinical trial data assessed by a dedicated team of MHRA scientists and clinicians has shown that Ronapreve can be used to prevent infection, promote resolution of symptoms of acute COVID-19 infection, and reduce the likelihood of being admitted to hospital due to COVID-19 infection, according to the MHRA.
“Ronapreve is the first of its kind for the treatment of COVID-19, and after a meticulous assessment of the data by our expert scientists and clinicians, we are satisfied that this treatment is safe and effective,” Dr Samantha Atkinson, MHRA Interim Chief Quality & Access Officer.
“With no compromises on quality, safety and efficacy, the public can trust that the MHRA have conducted a robust and thorough assessment of all the available data,” she said.
The announcement of the new medication comes after AstraZeneca revealed that its antibody treatment had fulfilled the primary aim of preventing COVID-19 in a late-stage trial. The development puts the British-Swedish biopharmaceutical giant on pace to possibly offer a vaccination option to patients with compromised immune systems.
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