According to the BMBF, around 10 per cent of people infected with SARS-CoV-2 suffer from long-term symptoms such as fatigue, headache, impaired concentration, breathlessness, and loss of taste and smell.
In order to determine the causes of long COVID and develop therapies, the BMBF are funding 10 selected projects that follow a variety of approaches. Three of these projects involve significant contributions from Ascenion’s partner institutes.
The reCOVer project will evaluate BC 007 as a possible therapy for long COVID. The drug was developed by Ascenion’s portfolio company BerlinCures, a start-up from the Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin and the Helmholtz Association’s Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine. Treatment with BC 007 at the Universitätsklinikum Erlangen led to a dramatic improvement in the symptoms of three long-COVID patients. On this basis, a pilot study will be conducted, followed by an approval study. The mode of action of BC 007 involves the neutralization of antibodies specific for G-Protein-coupled receptors that are thought to play an important role in the perpetuation of COVID symptoms. A connection between these antibodies and the pathogenesis of heart disease and certain neurological diseases has already been demonstrated. BC 007 has been shown to be safe and effective in previous Phase I trials, and is currently under investigation in a Phase II study in patients with heart disease.
Further projects involving Ascenion’s partners are ErgoLoCo (University Medical Center Göttingen and others) and PulmVask-COVID-ISIE (Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin and others). ErgoLoCo is investigating an ergotherapeutic approach, focussing particularly on hitherto less well researched patient groups, such as adolescents. PulmVask-COVID-ISIE is aimed at improving diagnosis and developing new therapeutic approaches for long-COVID patients with persistent breathlessness.
Further information: BMBF announcement of funding for long-COVID research projects (in German)