New data show that the GSK-Vir drug works against all Omicron mutations

The GlaxoSmithKlines (GSK) logo was seen at the pharmaceutical company’s research center in Stevenage, UK, 26 November 2019. REUTERS / Peter Nicholls / File Photo

December 7 (Reuters) ̵[ads1]1; The British drug manufacturer GSK (GSK.L) said on Tuesday that the antibody-based COVID-19 treatment with the American partner Vir Biotechnology (VIR.O) is effective against all mutations of the new Omicron coronavirus variant, with reference to new data from early studies.

The data, which have not yet been published in a peer-reviewed medical journal, show that the companies’ treatment, sotrovimab, is effective against all 37 identified mutations to date in the spike protein, GSK said in a statement.

Last week, another preclinical data showed that the drug had acted against key mutations of the Omicron variant. Sotrovimab is designed to attach to the spike protein on the surface of the coronavirus, but Omicron has been shown to have an unusually high number of mutations on that protein. read more

“These preclinical data demonstrate the potential for our monoclonal antibody to be effective against the latest variant, Omicron, plus all other variants of concern defined to date by the WHO,” said GSK Chief Scientific Officer Hal Barron.

GSK and Vir have developed so-called pseudoviruses that have large coronavirus mutations across all suspicious variants that have emerged so far, and have run laboratory tests on their vulnerability to sotrovimab treatment.

Reporting of Pushkala Aripaka in Bengaluru; Edited by Sherry Jacob-Phillips

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