Australian anti-infective-focused company Reece Pharmaceuticals has entered two of its anti-viral candidates into the University of Melbourne’s The Peter Doherty Institute and The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) Covid-19 screening programme.
RECCE327 and REECE529 have been selected by the CSIRO for screening – they have been deemed to be Priority 1 candidates, which means they are deemed to be most likely to have antiviral or antiseptic efficacy against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19.
Reece non-executive chairman Dr. John Prendergast commented: “We are very pleased to have been selected by the CSIRO, one of the largest and most diverse scientific research organisations in the world, to investigate the efficacy of two of our promising compounds against SARS-CoV-2.
“The compounds’ unique, universal mechanisms of action indicate potential to attack a broad range of viruses and as well, overcome the threat of viruses’ typical hyper-mutation into new and deadly pathogens.”
The aim of the CSIRO and Doherty Institute’s programme is to identify and quickly advance promising anti-virals into R&D for Covid-19. Promising candidates from the screening process will progress into in vitro pre-clinical studies by CSIRO’s pathogens team.
