"13 COVID-19 Treatments and 2 Vaccines Under Clinical Trials in South Korea"

[Asia Economy Reporter Cho Hyun-ui] The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety announced on the 11th that a total of 15 clinical trials are currently underway in South Korea for COVID-19 treatments and vaccines, including 13 treatment trials and 2 vaccine trials.

According to the Ministry, since the announcement on the 22nd of last month, two additional clinical trials for COVID-19 treatments have been approved domestically, bringing the total number of approved clinical trials for treatments and vaccines to 20. Among these 20 trials, 5 treatment clinical trials have been completed.

The two newly added trials include a researcher-initiated clinical trial combining Merck's 'Rebif' (recombinant human interferon beta-1a), originally a treatment for multiple sclerosis, with Gilead Sciences' 'Remdesivir,' and a Phase 1 clinical trial by Genexine to verify the COVID-19 treatment efficacy of 'GX-17' (recombinant human interleukin-7), which was being developed as a new anticancer drug.

Among the 13 COVID-19 clinical trials for treatments, based on their mechanisms of action, 9 are antiviral agents and 4 are immune modulators.

The two vaccine trials include 'INO-4800,' developed by the U.S. company Inovio and approved for clinical trials in South Korea by the International Vaccine Institute, and Genexine's 'GX-19' clinical trial.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.