Biopharmaceutical company Constant Therapeutics revealed on Wednesday that its peptide drug TXA127 will be tested in a series of Phase 2 clinical trials in hospitalised COVID-19 patients who are not in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU).

The trials will be conducted at medical centres in the United States, including the Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts; Policlinico S. Orsola-Malpighi Hospital in Bologna, Italy; and at sites in Israel affiliated with Bar-Ilan University and Technion Israel Institute of Technology. More than 400 patients are expected to take part in the trials.

According to the company, previous reports show that the binding of SARS-CoV-2 to ACE2 down-regulates the activity of the enzyme. This leads to a loss of angiotensin-(1-7), the active ingredient in TXA127, and thus a loss in the downstream activity of the peptide.

"We hope that by replacing the peptide with TXA127, the protective nature of the ACE2/Ang-(1-7)/Mas axis will be restored," explained Constant Therapeutics' CEO, Dr Richard Franklin.

In preclinical models of acute lung injury, TXA127 has been shown to reduce fibrosis, stabilise endothelial and epithelial barrier function and reduce inflammation.