Daewoong Pharmaceutical will carry out a phase 1 clinical trial of its COVID-19 stem cell therapy in Indonesia. The South Korean pharmaceutical company said on Monday its phase 1 trial protocol of DWP710 was recently approved by Indonesian health authorities.

The investigational stem cell drug being developed as a cure for severe respiratory illness from the virus was proven effective and safe in animal models.

Daewoong Pharm said it plans to conduct a phase 2 trial in Korea within this year after demonstrating the therapy’s safety in humans in the phase 1 trial.

In the preclinical tests, DWP710 showed antiviral effects with a significant viral load reduction in animals infected with COVID-19, according to the company.

By Seo Jin-woo and Minu Kim

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