BARDA, DARPA, and AstraZeneca Collaborate to Develop a Novel COVID-19 Therapeutic

Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) within the HHS Office of the Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response (ASPR) and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) within the Department of Defense are collaborating with AstraZeneca to advance its monoclonal antibody combination therapy for the treatment and protection against COVID-19 into Phase I clinical development.

Using an interagency agreement, BARDA will support AstraZeneca’s development of a monoclonal antibody combination product against SARS-CoV-2, including a Phase I clinical trial and the manufacturing of the investigational product for testing in Phase I.

Currently, there are no FDA-approved treatments or vaccines for COVID-19. Monoclonal antibodies are laboratory synthesized therapies that can be used to neutralize viruses. A combination of monoclonal antibodies that neutralizes the SARS-CoV-2 virus could be used as both a prophylaxis to prevent infection and as a treatment for COVID-19 infections.

Therapeutic and prophylactic antibody therapies are urgently needed to combat COVID-19, particularly in the absence of vaccines.

This award is one component of BARDA’s rapidly expanding COVID-19 medical countermeasure portfolio; visit BARDA’s COVID-19 Portfolio to learn more.