Sanofi tests three-in-one antibody to treat or prevent HIV
The
logo of French drugmaker Sanofi is seen in front of the company's
headquarters in Paris, France, March 8, 2016. REUTERS/Philippe
Wojazer/File Photo
LONDON (Reuters) - A three-pronged man-made antibody, created by French
drugmaker Sanofi and U.S. scientists, could offer a new way to treat or
prevent HIV, following successful tests in monkeys.
Plans are under way to try the so-called trispecific antibody in initial
human trials before the end of 2018, potentially adding a new weapon in
the fight against AIDS, assuming the product proves safe and effective.
If all goes well, the three-in-one antibody could be used either as a
long-acting treatment or a vaccine, according to Sanofi Chief Scientific
Officer Gary Nabel.
“There is certainly urgency for a vaccine and this could help fill that
void,” he said in an interview. “But we need to do the clinical studies
and let nature tell us what works.”
Anthony Fauci, director of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and
Infectious Diseases, whose experts collaborated on the project,
described the new approach as “intriguing”.
Unlike naturally occurring antibodies, the laboratory-made ones hit
multiple biological targets in a single product - a feature that is
particularly valuable in fighting HIV, given the huge genetic diversity
of viruses around the world.
After exposing 24 monkeys to two strains of a monkey form of HIV,
researchers found the majority of those given a traditional antibody
developed infection compared with none of those receiving the
trispecific one.
The results were published in the journal Science on Wednesday.
Other experiments showed the novel antibodies were active against 99 percent of more than 200 diverse strains of HIV tested.
The ability of trispecific antibodies to hit three targets at once might
also make them useful in fighting cancer, other infectious diseases and
autoimmune diseases. A number of drug companies are already working
with bispecific antibodies but a three-pronged approach takes things to
the next level.
