Eli Lilly has begun a Phase 3 trial studying a COVID-19 monoclonal antibody (mAb) drug for the prevention of SARS-CoV-2 infection in residents and staff at long-term care facilities in the U.S.
LY-CoV555, the lead antibody from Lilly's collaboration with AbCellera, is a neutralizing antibody against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. The Lilly-sponsored BLAZE-2 study is being conducted in partnership with NIAID, part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), along with the COVID-19 Prevention Network (CoVPN) and several long-term care facility networks across the country. The study will enroll residents and staff who live or work at facilities that have had a recently diagnosed case of COVID-19 and who are now at a high risk of exposure.
Antibody treatments are seen as a complement to vaccines, which may not elicit the necessary immune response when administered to elderly people or those with compromised immune systems.
Lilly is the second company with an antibody-based coronavirus treatment in late-stage testing. In early July, Regeneron began Phase 3 clinical trials evaluating REGN-COV2, an investigational double antibody cocktail for the treatment and prevention of COVID-19.
Read the Lilly press release
