Innovation Pharmaceuticals’ Brilacidin for the Treatment of COVID-19 Receives FDA Fast Track Designation

Phase 2 clinical trial of Brilacidin for COVID-19 anticipated to commence this month

WAKEFIELD, Mass., Jan. 14, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Innovation Pharmaceuticals (OTCQB:IPIX) (“the Company”), a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, is pleased to announce that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has designated as a Fast Track development program the investigation of Brilacidin as a potential treatment for COVID-19. Brilacidin is a first-in-class Host Defense Protein (HDP) mimetic with antiviral, anti-inflammatory and antibacterial properties.

Fast Track designation facilitates the development and expedites the review of drugs that are intended to treat serious and life-threatening conditions and show the potential to fill an unmet medical need. Drugs developed under the Fast Track program are afforded increased access to FDA staff and may qualify for other programs to further expedite their clinical development, such as priority review and accelerated approval.

“Receiving Fast Track designation is an important acknowledgment of the results of our COVID-19 laboratory research,” commented Leo Ehrlich, Chief Executive Officer at Innovation Pharmaceuticals. “Fast Track designation is well-timed, as we anticipate starting our Phase 2 clinical trial in hospitalized COVID-19 patients this month, and should help bring Brilacidin to patients faster in these dire times.”

To date, Brilacidin has received Fast Track designation for three different clinical indications: COVID-19, Oral Mucositis, and Acute Bacterial Skin and Skin Structure Infection (qualifying for Fast Track under Qualified Infectious Disease Product designation).

Brilacidin and COVID-19 
Brilacidin is one of the few drugs targeting COVID-19 that has been tested in human trials (a total of 8) for other clinical indications, providing established safety and efficacy data on over 460 subjects, thereby potentially enabling it to rapidly help address the novel coronavirus crisis. Laboratory testing at independent laboratories supports Brilacidin’s antiviral ability to safely and potently inhibit SARS-CoV-2, and multiple strains of human coronaviruses (H-CoVs). In a human lung cell line against SARS-CoV-2, Brilacidin achieved a Selectivity Index of 426. A molecular screening study of 11,552 compounds also supports Brilacidin as a promising novel coronavirus treatment. Brilacidin antiviral research to date has been limited to laboratory-based experiments. Additional pre-clinical and clinical data support Brilacidin’s inhibition of IL-6, IL-1β, TNF-α and other pro-inflammatory cytokines and chemokines, which have been identified as central drivers in the worsening prognoses of hospitalized COVID-19 patients. Brilacidin’s robust antimicrobial properties might also help to fight secondary bacterial infections, which can co-present in up to 20 percent of COVID-19 patients. Collectively, these data support Brilacidin as a unique 3 in 1 combination—antiviral, immuno/anti-inflammatory, and antimicrobial—COVID-19 therapeutic candidate, with pan-coronavirus treatment potential. A preprint supporting Brilacidin’s COVID-19 treatment potential can be downloaded at the link below.