Plasma Industry mobilized to help combat COVID-19

Plasma companies are actively engaging in the fight against COVID19 to develop potential treatments.

• • The CoVIg-19 Plasma Alliance, an unprecedented plasma industry collaboration recently established to accelerate the development of a plasma-derived hyperimmune globulin therapy for COVID-19, has announced that its membership has expanded to 10 plasma companies and that it now also includes global organizations from outside the plasma industry who are providing vital support to encourage more people to donate plasma including Microsoft and Uber Health. The Alliance was launched in an effort to accelerate the development of one, unbranded, anti-SARS-CoV-2 polyclonal hyperimmune immunoglobulin medicine with the potential to treat individuals with serious complications from COVID-19. The full press release is available here. Educational materials including an infographic explaining how plasma could lead to a potential treatment for COVID-19 and an information table explaining the differences between convalescent plasma and hyperimmune globulin have also been made available. For more information on the Alliance: https://www.covig-19plasmaalliance.org/en-us#recruitment

• • Grifols has recently announced that it had completed the development of very high sensitivity molecular test to detect SARS-CoV-2 virus. Previously Grifols had announced their formal collaboration with the United States Biomedical Advanced Research Development Authority (BARDA), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and other Federal public health agencies to collect plasma from convalescent COVID-19 patients, process this specific plasma into a hyperimmune globulin and support the necessary preclinical and clinical studies to determine if anti-SARS-CoV-2 hyperimmune globulin therapy can successfully be used to treat COVID-19 disease. For more information: https://www.grifols.com/en/covid-19-updates

• • Kedrion Biopharma, in addition to efforts on the use of convalescent plasma for the treatment of COVID19 have recently announced a global collaboration with Kamada for the development, manufacturing and distribution of a Plasma-Derived Anti-SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) Polyclonal Immunoglobulin Product. Pursuant to the agreement between the two companies, Kedrion will provide plasma, collected at its centers, from donors who have recovered from the virus and, upon receipt of regulatory approvals, will be responsible for commercialization of the product in the U.S., Europe, Australia, and South Korea. Kamada is responsible for product development, manufacturing, clinical development, with Kedrion’s support, and regulatory submissions. For more information: https://www.kedrion.com/coronavirus-plasma-anti-covid-19-treatment