Candidates: Cannabinoids
Type: Cannabinoid compounds designed to block replication of SARS-CoV-2
Status: Pascal said July 14 that a cannabinoid it identified may have the potential to limit the severity and progression of the disease. The cannabinoid was discovered by Pascal scientists during a search for compounds, including cannabinoids, that showed activity against SARS-CoV-2 in a cell-based assay.
The best-performing cannabinoid showed a potency similar to remdesivir, Pascal said. The results will be further confirmed with additional assays, leading to clinical trials which the company hopes to begin within a year.
“Because most cannabinoids have a good safety profile and favorable pharmacological properties, we are hopeful that this discovery will provide therapeutic benefit for COVID-19,” Pascal CEO Patrick W. Gray, PhD, stated.
Pascal said it believed it was the first company to identify a cannabinoid that directly inhibits the virus. The company has applied for patent protection for its discovery.
COVID-19: 200 Candidates and Counting
To navigate through the >200 potential therapeutic and vaccine options for COVID-19, GEN has grouped the candidates into four broad categories based on their developmental and (where applicable) clinical progress:
● FRONT RUNNER – the most promising therapeutics/vaccines based on clinical progress, favorable data or both.
● DEFINITELY MAYBE – earlier phases with promising partners, or more advanced candidates in development that have generated uneven data.
● KEEPING AN EYE ON… – interesting technology, attracting notable partners, or both, but preliminary data.
● TOO SOON TO TELL – longshots pending additional experimental and/or clinical data.
GEN has also tagged the most common treatment types: