NIAID testing Regeneron mAbs to treat MERS

NIH’s National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases began a Phase I trial in healthy volunteers to evaluate two mAbs from Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:REGN) to treat Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) coronavirus infection. The candidates, REGN3048 and REGN3051, target MERS-CoV S protein.

The double-blind trial is to enroll 48 subjects in six dose cohorts to receive IV placebo or 1.5-75 mg/kg of each mAb. The study, which NIAID expects to complete in June 2019, will be reviewed regularly by an independent safety committee. HHS's Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) is partially funding the study...