Galidesivir
Galidesivir is an antiviral drug, an adenosine analog. It is developed by BioCryst Pharmaceuticals with funding from NIAID, originally intended as a treatment for hepatitis C, but subsequently developed as a potential treatment for deadly filovirus infections such as Ebola virus disease and Marburg virus disease.
It also shows broad-spectrum antiviral effectiveness against a range of other RNA virus families, including bunyaviruses, arenaviruses, paramyxoviruses, coronaviruses, flaviviruses and phleboviruses. BCX4430 has been demonstrated to protect against both Ebola and Marburg viruses in both rodents and monkeys, even when administered up to 48 hours after infection, and development for use in humans was then being fast-tracked due to concerns about the lack of treatment options for the 2013-2016 Ebola virus epidemic in West Africa.
BCX4430 later showed efficacy against Zika virus in a mouse model.
Galidesivir is one of several antiviral drugs being tested for coronavirus disease 2019.
On April 9th, BioCryst opened enrollment into a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial to assess the safety, clinical impact and antiviral effects of galidesivir in patients with COVID-19. The trial is being funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health. https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03891420
