Cocrystal Pharma Inc (NASDAQ:COCP) continues to see heavy buying interest as the stock has soared 22% over the past month.
Market Reaction:
As of 10:12, COCP stock moved up 9.60% to $1.37 with more than 8.08 million shares, compared to its average volume of 15.74 million shares. The stock has moved within a range of $1.3100 – 1.3900 after opening the trade at $1.36.
Major Trigger:
Cocrystal’s Lead COVID-19 Antiviral CDI-45205 Shown to be Active Against SARS-CoV-2 and Two Prominent SARS-CoV-2 Variants
Key Highlights:
- announces that its lead preclinical SARS-CoV-2 3CL protease inhibitor CDI-45205 is active against SARS-CoV-2 and two prominent SARS-CoV-2 variants.
- A third-party laboratory contracted by Cocrystal conducted in vitro studies evaluating the antiviral activity of CDI-45205 and its analogs in VeroE6-eGFP cells infected with SARS-CoV-2 (Wuhan strain), the United Kingdom variant (B.1.1.7) and the South African variant (B.1.351). CDI-45205 and its analogs showed excellent antiviral activity against both SARS-CoV-2 variants, surpassing the activity observed with SARS-CoV-2 (Wuhan strain).
- Two reference inhibitors including remdesivir, an FDA-approved SARS-CoV-2 RNA-dependent RNA polymerase inhibitor, and PF-00835231, another SARS-CoV-2 3CL protease inhibitor, were included in the study as comparators. Results showed CDI-45205 had excellent antiviral activity against the United Kingdom variant, with an EC50 of 1.9 uM (remdesivir EC50 0.6 uM; PF-00835231 EC50 >100 uM) and against the South African variant, with an EC50 of 2.5 uM (remdesivir EC50 0.8 uM; PF-00835231 EC50 >100 uM) in the absence of a P-glycoprotein efflux inhibitor.
Key Quote:
“We are highly encouraged by these results with CDI-45205 against SARS-CoV-2 and two prominent variants of SARS-CoV-2, and we intend to continue with further testing for antiviral activity against other emerging variants including the Indian variant,” said Sam Lee, Ph.D., Cocrystal’s President and interim co-CEO.