Russia (bbabo.net), - What is the new antiviral drug "MIR 19" and what other drugs for coronavirus have appeared recently? - The week continues to answer questions from our readers.

What is the new MIR 19 coronavirus drug?

Last week, the Russian Ministry of Health registered a new drug for the treatment of COVID-19 - it was named MIR 19. It was developed by scientists of the State Research Center "Institute of Immunology" of the FMBA of Russia.

The unusual name of the drug stands for "Small interfering RNA", since the action is based on the use of microRNAs that block certain sites of the RNA virus, as a result of which it loses its ability to reproduce. That is, as the developers emphasize, the drug is etiotropic, in other words, it affects the cause of the disease.

The drug is very easy to use: the patient receives it by inhalation, inhaling through a nebulizer. At the same time, the medicine does not affect the human body, the target is the virus. Clinical trials continued throughout 2021 - MIR 19 was used in the "red zone" in patients with moderate severity of COVID-19. Tests have confirmed that the drug is effective compared to standard therapy. True, the new medicine has been recommended for use so far only in hospitals.

"The peculiarity of the drug is that it works at the genetic level, namely, selectively suppresses the activity of vital sequences of the RNA virus, while not affecting the human genome. The drug encodes an enzyme - RNA polymerase of the virus. Without this enzyme, the virus loses its ability to multiply inside the body ", - explained the mechanism of action of the new drug, head of FMBA Veronika Skvortsova.

“The main components of the drug are synthetic molecules of small interfering RNAs (miRNAs), which, inside the infected cell of the body, target the pathogen genome and contribute to its degradation. For this, a special carrier was created, a special peptide that, upon contact with RNA molecules, forms nanocomplexes. Such nanocomplexes are able to overcome the barrier in the form of a cell wall and have an antiviral effect already inside the cell, "said Musa, Director of the Institute of Immunology, Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences Khaitov.

This is not the first drug of this kind - earlier the Institute created and successfully used drugs against the hepatitis C virus, as well as drugs for the treatment of bronchial asthma and allergic rhinitis.

What is hybrid immunity?

Many people are interested in why doctors recommend getting vaccinated even for those who have had coronavirus and, it would seem, are reliably protected by naturally formed immunity. However, studies show that people who have received hybrid immunity, that is, as a result of both illness and vaccination, are best protected.

A person who has recovered from COVID-19 has a high risk of getting sick again if the first time he was infected with the delta strain, and the second time with the omicron.

"If you have been ill with the previous strains of coronavirus, this gives practically no protection against omicron. Vaccination with two doses of the vaccine shows a better result than the previous disease. But, unfortunately, even such indicators of protection against omicron are lower than What kind of protection the vaccines against the delta strain gave. Against the delta, all vaccines worked very well, "therapist, toxicologist Alexei Vodovozov told Sputnik radio in an interview.

Hybrid immunity also protects against omicron

The expert noted that the most reliable protection against infection with the omicron strain is obtained by those people who have developed hybrid immunity.

"Hybrid immunity turned out to be ten times higher in effectiveness against omicron. Hybrid immunity is a combination of a past disease and vaccination, and in any combination. According to the information that we have today, this is most likely the most effective protection from the "omicron" of all available and even theoretically possible ", - said the doctor. He noted that hybrid immunity can enhance the body's defense against the omicron strain tenfold. It turns out that you need to be vaccinated in any case, regardless of whether a person was sick with a coronavirus infection before or not.

"Although vaccines do not provide one hundred percent protection against infection with omicron, they still provide protection from severe cases, from getting on ventilators and deaths," Vodovozov explained.

Checking the news

Is it true that there is an effective pill against coronavirus in the West?

So far, these are only loud statements, however, based on the results of the first stages of clinical trials. The antiviral pill, called Paxloid, is said to be used by pharmaceutical giant Pfizer for outpatient treatment. The company said the drug reduced the risk of severe COVID-19 and death by 89% compared to the placebo group. There were no deaths among the volunteers who received Paklovid, and hospitalization was required for less than 1% of the participants. In the control group, which was on standard therapy, 7% had to be sent to the hospital, and seven people died.

However, before the drug is registered, there will be more extensive trials involving tens of thousands of volunteers.

At the same time, Pfizer announced that they plan to include Russian clinics in the tests.

Interestingly, almost simultaneously with the announcement of Paklovid (or rather, exactly one day before the announcement), the news came about the registration in Great Britain of another antiviral drug, Molnupiravir, developed by the American Merck with partners. This drug, the developers said, reduces the risk of severe COVID-19 and death in half.

In fact, Paklovid is a modified old Pfizer drug against rhinoviruses, explained virologist Pavel Volchkov. According to the expert, he is unlikely to be able to have a decisive influence on the pandemic: the principle of action of the RNA drugs, to which he belongs, is such that the rapidly changing coronavirus will quickly "learn" to bypass the inhibitory (blocking) effect of the drug. It may not be effective against new strains.

The search for a reliable antiviral drug is ongoing in our country. The head of the Gamaleya Center, Alexander Gintsburg, said that in the second half of 2022, the research center plans to start testing such a drug.

"Clinical trials will begin, I think, in the second half of 2022, this is low molecular weight chemistry, the drug will directly" crush "the multiplication of the virus in patients who are already in even severe stages. was not vaccinated ", - said Gunzburg.

bbabo.Net