New progress for oral covid drug

Recently, everyone has seen Merck (Merck & Co.) and Pfizer have made breakthroughs in the field of oral new covid drugs respectively.

Molnupiravir

On November 4, Merck and Ridgeback announced that its oral antiviral small molecule drug Molnupiravir has been approved by the British regulatory agency. This is the world's first oral antiviral therapy for the treatment of patients with mild to moderate COVID-19. Because it can be taken orally, patients can receive treatment at home for the first time, avoiding the need for hospitalization and the occupation of medical resources.

Paxlovid（PF-07321332）

On November 5, Pfizer announced that the oral antiviral therapy under development will significantly reduce the risk of hospitalization and death in patients with COVID-19 in Phase 2/3 clinical trials. Compared with the placebo group, Paxlovid (the main ingredient PF-07321332, and low-dose ritonavir used to increase metabolism) reduced the risk of hospitalization or death by 89%. Seven patients in the control group died unfortunately, and the value in the Paxlovid group was 0. Pfizer will seek emergency use authorization from the US FDA as soon as possible.

PF-07321332 is a new coronavirus 3CL protease inhibitor. It has a completely new mechanism of action.