Regeneron, Sanofi to test arthritis drug Kevzara as coronavirus treatment

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals and Sanofi are to launch trials to see if their arthritis drug could treat symptoms of COVID-19.

Leonard S. Schleifer, founder and CEO of Regeneron, addresses a Coronavirus Task Force meeting at the White House in Washington DC this month Picture: Zuma Press

Drugmakers Regeneron Pharmaceuticals and Sanofi are racing to launch clinical trials exploring whether their arthritis drug could treat symptoms of novel coronavirus infections.

The study preparations mark the latest effort in an emerging front in researchers’ hunt for effective treatments for COVID-19, the respiratory disease caused by the novel coronavirus. In the US, there aren’t any drugs or vaccines approved for the condition.

The research aims to see whether certain drugs already on the market to tackle immune disorders like rheumatoid arthritis could help ease damage to the lungs and respiratory system caused by the immune system’s over-reaction to the virus causing COVID-19. The drugs wouldn’t treat the underlying virus.

The Sanofi and Regeneron drug, called Kevzara, was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2017 to treat rheumatoid arthritis.

“The goal would be in the next couple of weeks to have the trial up and running, and in weeks to months after that to have the data,” Regeneron chief scientific officer George Yancopoulos said on Tuesday.

Chinese researchers have reported that a similar-acting drug, Actemra from Roche Holding, had helped a small group of patients with severe or critical COVID-19 recover.