By Agencies
A new HIV drug created by Israeli researchers has passed its first human clinical trial.
At end of the trial, it was discovered that the drug, named Gammora, created by Zion Medical, an Israeli biotech company was capable of wiping out 99 per cent of HIV infected cells in the human body.
According to a statement released by the company and available on PR Newswire, Gammora was able to eliminate up to 90 per cent of the virus during the first four weeks of the trial.
Zion Medical developed the drug Gammora in collaboration with the Hebrew University in Jerusalem and the Sirion Biotech in Germany.
The drug is designed to attack and kill the HIV-infected cells in the human body without causing damage to the healthy cells.
In the study, researchers randomly assigned nine participating patients from the Ronald Bata Memorial Hospital in Uganda to receive different doses of Gammora between four to five weeks in July and August of this year.
While the new HIV drug is still in its first stage of exploration, the results have already offered hope that a cure for the dreaded virus is possible.
“Most patients showed a significant reduction of the viral load of up to 90 per cent from the baseline during the first four weeks,” said Dr. Esmira Naftalim, Zion Medical’s head of development.
The company hopes to start Phase 2b in the coming months, involving around 50 patients that are given Gammora over two to three months.
About Zion Medical:
Israel-based Zion Medical was established in 2014 with the mission to develop groundbreaking medical solutions for HIV/AIDS and cancer. It is known for its patented synthetic peptide Gammora, which is derived from the HIV enzyme integrase, and has been proven to be effective in killing HIV-infected cells, and which has also shown promising results with some types of cancers cells.
