GSK-Vir Drug Works Against All Omicron mutations, Says GSK

British drugmaker GSK on Tuesday said its antibody based COVID-19 therapy with U.S. partner Vir Biotechnology is effective against all mutations of the new omicron variant. The company announcement is backed by citing early stage of studies.

According to a Reuters report citing GSK statement, the data is yet to be published in a peer reviewed medical journal shows that the companies’ treatment, sotrovimab, is effective against all 37 identified mutations to date in the spike protein.

Another pre-clinical data published last week showed that the drug worked agisnts key mutations of the Omicron variant. Retuers reported, “Sotrovimab is designed to latch on to the spike protein on the surface of the coronavirus, but Omicron has been found to have an unusually high number of mutations on that protein”.

“These pre-clinical data demonstrate the potential for our monoclonal antibody to be effective against the latest variant, Omicron, plus all other variants of concern defined to date by the WHO,” GSK Chief Scientific Officer Hal Barron said.