Dive Brief:
- Vir Biotechnology on Thursday said an antibody drug it’s developing as a preventive therapy for influenza illness failed to meet its goals in a Phase 2 trial, sending shares tumbling more than 40%.
- Study results showed a high dose of Vir’s drug, VIR-2482, led to only a 16% reduction in illness related to influenza A infections when compared to a placebo, a result that wasn’t statistically significant. Better numbers were observed on a secondary measure — a 57% decrease in symptomatic infections with criteria defined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention — but still missed statistical significance. The company will further discuss the results during a quarterly conference call next month.
- The negative findings are another setback in Vir’s plans to build on its success developing the COVID-19 antibody drug Xevudy. That drug is no longer authorized in the U.S. due to the emergence of newer viral variants.
Dive Insight:
While there are plenty of flu vaccines available, there remains room for improvement, as available shots are typically only 40% to 60% effective even when they’re matched to circulating strains.
The CDC, for example, has estimated100,000 hospitalizations and 5,000 deaths in the U.S. were related to infections during the 2021 and 2022 flu seasons.
Vir hoped its antibody therapy could become an additional tool, particularly for groups such as older adults that are particularly vulnerable to poor health outcomes.
The biotech designed its drug to cover all major strains of influenza A that have arose since the 1918 flu pandemic. The “A” strains of influenza are more common than the “B” strains that most existing shots tend to work better against.
The drug drew the interest of GSK, which co-developed Xevudy with Vir and gained an option to co-develop VIR-2482 in 2021. The antibody previously showed promise in Phase 1 testing. GSK has the right to exercise that option following Phase 2 testing.
That option, which could trigger a $300 million payment for Vir, is now in jeopardy, creating a new challenge for CEO Marianne de Backer, who took over for George Scangos to become the head of the biotech in April.
Vir still intends to develop another antibody candidate for the flu that targets both A and B strains. It’s in preclinical testing, however.
Vir shares fell to less than $13 apiece during Thursday trading, their lowest levels since early 2020.