Interview with Jin Kim, Head of Medical Division at GC Green Cross
"Deployment within the year... Effective even with simple plasma transfusion"
Production volume and donor numbers proportional, "Continuous support from recovered patients needed"
[Asia Economy Reporter Cho Hyun-ui] "If the development of the treatment is completed within this year, it will be deployed to medical sites first."
On the 12th, Kim Jin, Head of Medical Division at GC Green Cross, stated in an interview with Asia Economy that the development of a plasma treatment for the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) is progressing rapidly. Plasma treatment is a pharmaceutical product concentrated and formulated from antibodies and immunoglobulins contained in the blood of COVID-19 recovered patients.
GC Green Cross's plasma treatment is evaluated to be the most advanced in development stage among COVID-19 treatment candidates, excluding the 'drug repositioning' method. Kim explained, "GC Green Cross has experience commercializing plasma treatments such as for hepatitis B and anti-tetanus immunoglobulin," adding, "Since the mechanism of action and production methods are the same as these products, the development process could be simplified."
◆ "Changing development structure for rapid development" = The biggest concern for GC Green Cross is to maximize the speed of treatment development. Kim said, "Since the COVID-19 situation is not a normal one, we are continuously seeking various methods for rapid development," and added, "Among these, we are focusing on adjusting the development process from a serial structure, which proceeds step-by-step, to a parallel development structure where multiple processes run simultaneously."
The development of plasma treatment is being promoted as a national project, so collaboration with the government is also important. Kim evaluated, "Although COVID-19 is much more serious than previous novel infectious diseases, it is very encouraging that active cooperation between the public and private sectors is taking place."
At the end of last month, GC Green Cross submitted an Investigational New Drug (IND) application for phase 2 clinical trials of the plasma treatment to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. They plan to verify safety and efficacy with 60 patients at five hospitals nationwide. This process will also estimate how many patients can be treated with antibodies extracted from one recovered patient. Kim judged that the safety and efficacy of the plasma treatment have been secured above a certain level. He said, "Plasma has been used in the human body for a long time," and added, "Since simple plasma administration has shown therapeutic effects against past novel infectious diseases, the therapeutic efficacy of pharmaceuticals made by concentrating it is also promising."
◆ "Continued cooperation from recovered patients needed" appeal = GC Green Cross completed the manufacturing process for clinical trial use of the plasma treatment on the 10th and plans to start clinical trials on COVID-19 patients as soon as approval is granted. However, Kim appealed that a large amount of blood is needed due to the nature of plasma treatment being made from components extracted from the blood of recovered patients. He emphasized, "The number of donors inevitably corresponds to the production volume of the treatment," and added, "Even after clinical trials, active cooperation from recovered patients is necessary for additional follow-up research and production of treatments to be used in actual medical sites."
GC Green Cross plans to supply the plasma treatment free of charge to domestic patients once development is completed. Since they will bear all costs from development to commercialization excluding government subsidies, losses are inevitable. Kim stated, "The purpose of developing the treatment itself is for the stabilization of public health," and added, "It has value beyond monetary gain."
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