EngineChem Life Sciences to Advance COVID-19 Treatment Clinical Trials in the US... Expected Superior Efficacy Compared to Chloroquine

Formation of COVID-19 Dedicated TF Team
US President Trump Approves Use of Chloroquine... EC-18 Initiates US IND Application
Majority of Emergency Treatment IND Application Data Secured

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyungsoo Park] Engchem Life Sciences announced on the 23rd that it has officially begun preparations for clinical trials of the COVID-19 treatment in Korea and the United States, including expediting the IND application for EC-18 to the U.S. FDA based on the mechanism of action of the new drug substance 'EC-18' in eliminating the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19).

Jodohyun Cho, CEO of Engchem Life Sciences' U.S. branch, stated, “As part of NASA's Translational Research Institute for Space Health (TRISH) medical countermeasure research, we conducted joint research with several U.S. university research institutions to verify EC-18's effect in reducing radiation-induced cell death. Preliminary research results show that EC-18 is more effective than 'chloroquine' in reducing cell death, raising high expectations as a treatment for COVID-19 infectious disease.”

He added, “We have formed a 'COVID-19 dedicated task force team' locally in the U.S. and have begun preparing to submit the IND to the U.S. FDA.”

In this regard, the U.S. FDA announced on the 19th guidelines for Expanded Access, which allow emergency use authorization for clinical drugs under development for other indications to be used for COVID-19 patients. On the same day, U.S. President Donald Trump approved the use of the malaria treatment drug 'chloroquine' for COVID-19 treatment purposes.

Dr. Sunyoung Yoon, head of Engchem Life Sciences' Daejeon Bio Research Center, introduced, “EC-18 is a next-generation antiviral new drug substance whose mechanism of action has been identified as enabling immune cells to rapidly engulf and eliminate viruses, thereby preventing viral proliferation in a short time.”

She emphasized, “When the virus invades the intracellular endosome, it instantly generates a large amount of reactive oxygen species (ROS), quickly eliminating the virus.”

She explained, “It suppresses viral replication and the resulting progeny while simultaneously inhibiting programmed cell death (necroptosis), effectively blocking the virus from spreading to other cells. It also controls the cytokine storm, preventing the accumulation of large numbers of inflammatory cells in infected tissues.”

Engchem Life Sciences has already completed research on the mechanisms of EC-18 related to pneumonia, acute lung injury, sepsis, asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, phagocytosis, and efferocytosis (the process by which macrophages remove dead cells), publishing papers in world-renowned academic journals. Currently, it is conducting Phase 2 clinical trials for oral mucositis and neutropenia, and medical countermeasure (MCM) projects for acute radiation syndrome indications in collaboration with the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), Department of Defense (DOD), and NASA's TRISH. Most of the data required for the emergency treatment IND application has been secured.

Engchem Life Sciences has applied to BARDA's MCM COVID-19 program under the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. It has also filed patents with the U.S. Patent Office for EC-18 as a treatment for COVID-19 infection and pneumonia, meticulously preparing for COVID-19 clinical trials.

On the 18th, Engchem Life Sciences formed a company-wide 'COVID-19 dedicated task force team' to strengthen medical countermeasures against COVID-19, mobilizing key personnel in Korea and the U.S., including external respiratory infection specialists, to respond to COVID-19.