Synairgen says COPD safety supports Covid-19 safety

Data on Synairgen’s inhaled interferon beta-1a SNG001 are important not so much for what they mean in this setting – COPD patients who also have a cold or flu – as what they might indicate about the drug’s safety in its other phase II trial, in Covid-19. An interim look at the first 109 patients in the SG015 study showed similar rates of adverse events, at 46% with SNG001 versus 48% with placebo; treatment-related adverse events were more frequent in the placebo group, at 25% compared with 16%. Synairgen hopes that this might indicate that the anti-infective will be safe in Covid-19, too. Among the 32% of trial subjects with COPD exacerbations, who were already being treated with steroids and/or antibiotics at the time of randomisation, those given SNG001 had significantly (p=0.041) better lung function during the treatment period than those on placebo. But there was no significant difference in patient-reported symptoms assessed using the Breathlessness, Cough and Sputum Score. Development in COPD has been paused in order to prioritise the Covid-19 trial, data from which could come early next year. Hopes are high: Synairgen's stock has surged more than ten-fold on hopes that SNG001 has a pandemic role to play.