BC 007: Will there be a drug against long-COVID soon?
The active ingredient BC 007 was originally intended to be used to treat heart disease. Initial studies now indicate that BC 007 could also alleviate the symptoms of long-COVID sufferers. What do we know so far about the active ingredient?
The new application for BC 007 was discovered at the eye clinic of the University of Erlangen. They had been investigating a potential use of BC 007 to treat glaucoma .
What is BC 007?
BC 007 was first investigated in connection with diseases of the heart muscles (cardiomyopathies). Autoantibodies (AAK) can play a role in these diseases. AAK are formed by the immune system and mistakenly target the body’s own structures, causing them to be damaged.
BC 007 is a so-called aptamer, i.e. an artificial DNA fragment. This has the ability to bind to certain molecules and thus neutralize them. How exactly this happens in the case of autoantibodies is still unclear.
The Erlangen research team led by physician Bettina Hohberger originally examined the effect of BC 007 on patients with glaucoma. Autoantibodies also play a role in this disease.
However, together with colleagues from the Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in Berlin, the researchers noticed parallels to people with long-COVID . Autoantibodies were also found in blood samples from these patients . In this case, the AAK presumably damage the red blood cells or the finest blood vessels (capillaries), which impairs blood circulation in the body and thus also the oxygen supply to organs. This could be a trigger for some symptoms in Long-COVID.
BC 007 as a long-Covid drug – positive results so far
So far, the active ingredient has been tested on four people with long-COVID. All received a single infusion. The results give reason for hope: In all those affected, the symptoms such as severe exhaustion, impaired concentration or taste disorders improved significantly, even if one of the test persons suffered a relapse after a few months. Autoantibodies were no longer detectable in the blood following the infusion.
Instead, a higher density of blood vessels and a normalization of the red blood cells could be determined. It is currently still unclear whether the active substance will only have to be administered once in future therapies or whether multiple doses will be required.
It is also still unclear whether the neutralization of the autoantibodies in all those affected with long-COVID leads to positive results. Because virus particles from SARS-CoV-2 that remain in the body could also be responsible for some of the symptoms. These ensure a permanent reaction of the immune system, so that symptoms of the disease can continue to appear even after the infection has been overcome. Therefore, it is currently assumed that the active substance is only suitable for certain people affected.
As a next step, a comprehensive clinical study on the use of BC 007 in long-COVID is planned, which should provide further information about a possible therapeutic benefit of the active substance. This is scheduled to begin in 2022.