Merck to Begin Pivotal COVID-19 Antiviral Studies in September

During Merck's (NYSE: MRK) second-quarter earnings call on Friday, the company's head of research and development discussed progress on a potential new treatment for COVID-19 patients. The antiviral candidate MK-4482 is a nucleoside analog that makes it hard for SARS-CoV-2 to replicate itself in the laboratory.

Following encouraging results from an ascending dose study, Merck thinks MK-4482 is well-tolerated at levels that should be more than enough to stop SARS-CoV-2 in its tracks. Based on preliminary results from three mid-stage studies, Roger Perlmutter, president of Merck Research Laboratories, believes the company will begin a pair of large pivotal trials in September.

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Source Fool.com