Atea Pharmaceuticals Announces Publication of Additional Data Further Highlighting Bemnifosbuvir’s Metabolic Activation Pathway

New Data Further Elucidates Bemnifosbuvir’s Metabolic Activation Pathway, Critical to its Mechanism of Action as an Antiviral Therapy for Treatment of COVID-19, HCV and Potentially a Broad Range of RNA Viruses

BOSTON, Aug. 28, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Atea Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: AVIR) (“Atea”), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company engaged in the discovery and development of oral antiviral therapeutics for serious viral diseases, today announced that data highlighting the metabolic activation pathway of bemnifosbuvir were published in the peer-reviewed journal, PLOS Biology, in an article titled, “The activation cascade of the broad-spectrum antiviral bemnifosbuvir characterized at atomic resolution.” Bemnifosbuvir, an oral nucleotide RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) inhibitor, is in Phase 3 development for the treatment of COVID-19 and in Phase 2 development in combination with ruzasvir, an oral NS5A inhibitor, for the treatment of hepatitis c virus (HCV) infection. 

Study authors outline the sequences of atomic resolution required to convert bemnifosbuvir (AT-527) into its active 5'-triphosphate, AT-9010. AT-9010 has demonstrated selective inhibition of essential RNA viral enzymes leading to potent antiviral activity. Through the activation pathway to AT-9010, HCV RNA synthesis is halted through RNA chain termination, and SARS-CoV-2 RNA synthesis is halted through targeting of the replicase complex at two distinct sites.

“We continue to deepen our scientific knowledge of bemnifosbuvir, our direct-acting antiviral drug candidate derived from Atea’s purine nucleotide prodrug platform,” said Jean-Pierre Sommadossi, PhD, Chief Executive Officer and Founder of Atea Pharmaceuticals. “These findings further highlight the sequence of reactions that convert bemnifosbuvir (AT-527) into the active triphosphate metabolite AT-9010, which selectively inhibits key viral enzymes thereby leading to antiviral potency. Insights describing key drug-protein interactions in this publication add to the growing body of evidence supporting bemnifosbuvir’s potential as an effective antiviral therapy for the treatment of COVID-19, HCV and potentially a broad range of RNA viruses.”