The drug created for the urgent treatment of tick-borne encephalitis has successfully finished its clinical trials, as declared by Vladimir Koval, the acting director of the Institute of Chemical Biology and Fundamental Medicine of the Siberian Branch of the RAS.
The drug, derived from a humanized antibody, has proven to be one hundred times more effective than the currently utilized immunoglobulin serum.This antibody binds to various subtypes of the tick-borne encephalitis virus, blocking its reproduction. In a study on mice, the drug was shown to be 500 times more potent than current immunoglobulin serum.
“We have created a humanized antibody, which is exactly the same antibody that binds to the viral particle and blocks it. But it is obtained biotechnologically, it is pure, characterized, homogeneous, always the same, which is important. Clinical trials have been completed,” Koval said.
Koval emphasized that the humanized antibody created at the institute is the same antibody as those that bind to the viral particle, but it is produced in a biotechnological manner, which ensures its purity, uniformity and stability.
At present, the treatment for individuals bitten by ticks involves the usage of immunoglobulin serum derived from the blood of individuals who have encountered tick-borne encephalitis. However, artificially synthesized antibodies are safer, more stable and effective, since they do not contain different titers of antibodies, like blood products, and can be completely purified from toxins.