Zydus Cadila files investigational new drug application for COVID-19 treatment

Drug firm Zydus Cadila on Tuesday said it has filed the investigational new drug (IND) application for ZYIL1, positioned for management of critically ill COVID-19 patients. "Following up on its initiatives to fight COVID-19 with diagnostics, vaccines and therapeutics, the company is now focussing on cutting edge research to bring targeted therapies... it has filed the IND application of ZYIL1, a novel oral small molecule," the company said in a regulatory filing.

Zydus Cadila said ZYIL1 will bridge a critical unmet healthcare need in several inflammatory diseases including the current pandemic of COVID-19 and address complications caused by chronic and uncontrolled inflammation. The company said it has completed all IND enabling preclinical studies and has filed the IND application to advance this drug candidate towards the clinic.

Zydus Cadila said ZYIL1, has demonstrated promising efficacy in a number of validated pre-clinical models of Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD), Multiple Sclerosis (MS), Sepsis and acute lung injury models of Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS). Shares of Cadila Healthcare were trading 7.88 per cent higher at Rs 442.45 apiece on BSE.