Amarillo Biosciences to Initiate Low-Dose Interferon Clinical Trials to Treat COVID-19, Appoints Interferon Specialist Dr. Manfred Beilharz to Scientific Advisory Board - Seite 2

Dr. Beilharz has stated, “The current COVID-19 pandemic urgently requires prevention and treatment options, particularly for frontline medical staff and at-risk groups, and oral low-dose type 1 interferon is a readily available public health option with an extensive published literature. It’s exciting that in the Hubei Province in China, where this pandemic originated, they have released details of a study where they treated over 2,000 frontline medical workers with oral interferon nose drops to try and protect them. There have been no reports of any contracting COVID-19, while in the controls - another 2,000 nurses and doctors working in the same province - 50 to 60 per cent were infected with COVID-19. That is a pretty clear demonstration of the prophylactic value of this.”  Dr. Beilharz will be managing the Company’s COVID-19 clinical trials in Australia.

ABI is also preparing to resume its clinical trials for thrombocytopenia, an immune condition causing low platelet count prevalent in patients that experience hepatitis-C relapse and other debilitating conditions such as chemotherapy treatment.  In a 2014 published study, “A Double-Blind Randomized Controlled Study to Evaluate the Efficacy of Low Dose Oral Interferon-Alpha in Preventing Hepatitis C Relapse,” Dr. Chau-Ting Yeh, Director, Liver Research Center at Chang Gung Memorial Hospital (Taiwan), was the co-author and principal investigator for a phase 2 clinical trial in which it was discovered that 500 IU low-dose interferon alpha was surprisingly effective in exerting a significantly expedited recovery of platelet count in chronic hepatitis C patients having moderate to severe liver fibrosis.  As a result of this study ABI applied for and received four thrombocytopenia related patents.  Dr. Yeh will be managing the Company’s subsequent thrombocytopenia clinical trials in Taiwan.

“As we move forward with planned Veldona clinical trials, both Dr. Beilharz and Dr. Yeh’s decades of research experience will be critical in successful execution and the establishment of effective collaborations with other stakeholders.  Our goal will be to diligently advance the Veldona clinical trial program with the vision of developing Veldona-based new treatments for COVID-19 patients, as well as patients with difficult-to-treat indications like thrombocytopenia and autoimmune disorders such as Sjögren’s syndrome who are in urgent need for therapeutic solutions,” said Dr. Stephen T. Chen.