Tetra Bio-Pharma poised to receive government funding to help develop potential coronavirus treatment ARDS-003

Tetra Bio-Pharma Inc (TSE:TBP) (OTCQB:TBPMF) (FRA:JAM1) said Monday it expects to receive public funding to help develop its flagship drug ARDS-003.  The Ottawa-based firm told shareholders that it was recommended for government funding to boost the development program for ARDS-003, which is being investigated as a potential treatment for both sepsis and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Derived from cannabinoids, ARDS-003 is designed to prevent and treat ARDS, a severe inflammatory response that could be life-threatening to coronavirus patients. READ: Tetra Bio-Pharma meets with FDA on its inhaled THC-based drug to treat chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting "This public funding recommendation confirms our diligent and dedicated research in discovering and developing a new drug therapeutic for saving lives and it is a sign of approval by a public agency,” Tetra CEO Guy Chamberland said in a statement. The drug’s ability to combat sepsis will be in focus as the world battles with a second wave of COVID-19. According to the World Health Organization, there were 11 million sepsis-related deaths worldwide in 2017, before COVID-19 was discovered. Chamberland said the company will optimize the clinical program to “rapidly bring ARDS-003 to the market and tackle this global crisis.” According to Tetra, preclinical studies have demonstrated significant anti-inflammatory effects in models of acute sepsis. The company’s collaborative work with US-based Targeted Pharmaceutical LLC, of which Tetra has 20% ownership, will build on this and allow the joint research teams to study ARDS-003 against other viral induced cytokine release syndrome (CRS) conditions that lead to ARDS and sepsis, such as those caused by Influenza A, the CEO added. Tetra's preclinical group plans to expand its CRS research to cancer and immunotherapy-induced sepsis and ARDS. "With government recognition, Tetra will optimize its clinical program to seek a marketing claim for sepsis and ARDS,” Chamberland added. “We will be able to rapidly adjust the clinical program by navigating through the Sars-CoV-2 regulatory paths. Since sepsis and ARDS are life-threatening conditions, the expedited regulatory pathways remain available to ARDS-003 independent of the vaccine campaign success rate.” Contact Angela at angela@proactiveinvestors.com Follow her on Twitter @AHarmantas