Pfizer begins early clinical trials for oral COVID-19 drug

The giant pharmaceutical company Pfizer started the earliest human clinical trials for a new oral COVID-19 drug, Sputnik reported on Wednesday.

Pfizer named this stage of the clinical trials "PF-07321332" and it has been initiated in the US.

The new drug is part of a new group of medicines that aim to stop the production of any enzymes the virus needs to be replicated in the human cells.

In the same context, Pfizer's chief scientific officer Mikael Dolsten said in a press release: "Tackling the COVID-19 pandemic requires both prevention via vaccine and targeted treatment for those who contract the virus"

“Given the way that SARS-CoV-2 is mutating and the continued global impact of COVID-19, it appears likely that it will be critical to have access to therapeutic options both now and beyond the pandemic,” he added.

Furthermore, these clinical trials include another drug dedicated to COVID-19 patients called PF-07304814 and it is in 1b stage.

The trials have been conducted on patients who already have been treated from COVID-19.

Pfizer was one of the earliest medical firms that launched officially one of the earliest COVID-19 vaccines, and it was the first vaccine to be used in a nation-wide vaccination campaign in the world last year.