Phase III Study of AZD7442 for Treatment of COVID-19 in Outpatient Adults

A novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, first emerged in China in November 2019 causing cases of atypical pneumonia. As of 6 October 2020, the virus has spread to all corners of the globe, with over 35 million confirmed cases reported and more than one million associated deaths according to the WHO. The COVID-19 pandemic is causing major disruption to global healthcare systems with significant socioeconomic impacts. Effective interventions to prevent or treat COVID-19 remain few in number and clinical experience is limited. There is an urgent need to rapidly evaluate treatments in the non-hospitalized setting to prevent progression and reduce serious complications of COVID-19, as well as its transmission. As a response to the ongoing pandemic, AstraZeneca is developing mAbs to the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. The SARS-CoV-2 spike protein contains the virus's RBD, which enables the virus to bind to receptors on human cells. By targeting this region of the virus's spike protein, antibodies can block the virus's attachment to human cells, and, therefore, is expected to block infection. Amino acid substitutions have been introduced into the antibodies to both extend their half-lives, which should prolong their potential prophylactic benefit, and decrease Fc effector function in order to decrease the potential risk of antibody-dependent enhancement of disease. AZD7442, a combination of 2 of these mAbs (AZD8895 and AZD1061), is being evaluated for administration to treat or prevent COVID-19. There are currently one ongoing Phase I study and two ongoing Phase III studies with AZD7442, in addition to this treatment study. Enrollment of up to approximately 1700 participants is planned.