Eli Lilly announced patients have been dosed in the world's first study of a potential antibody treatment designed to fight COVID-19.
The investigational medicine, referred to as LY-CoV555, is the first to emerge from the collaboration between Lilly and AbCellera to create antibody therapies for the prevention and treatment of COVID-19. The first patients in the study were given the treatment intravenously at major medical centers in the U.S., including NYU Grossman School of Medicine and Cedars-Sinai in Los Angeles.
Later this month, Lilly will review the results of this first human study and then initiate broader efficacy trials. Should Phase 1 results show the antibody can be safely administered, the drugmaker expects to move into the next phase of testing, studying LY-CoV555 in non-hospitalized COVID-19 patients. Lilly also plans to study the drug in a preventative setting, focusing on vulnerable patient populations who historically are not optimal candidates for vaccines.
Read the press release