Meplazumab in hospitalized adults with severe COVID-19 (DEFLECT): a multicenter, seamless phase 2/3, randomized, third-party double-blind clinical trial

Signal Transduct Target Ther. 2023 Jan 30;8(1):46. doi: 10.1038/s41392-023-01323-9.

Abstract

Meplazumab, a humanized CD147 antibody, has shown favourable safety and efficacy in our previous clinical studies. In DEFLECT (NCT04586153), 167 patients with severe COVID-19 were enroled and randomized to receive three dosages of meplazumab and a placebo. Meplazumab at 0.12 mg/kg, compared to the placebo group, showed clinical benefits in significantly reducing mortality by 83.6% (2.4% vs. 14.6%, p = 0.0150), increasing the proportion of patients alive and discharged without supplemental oxygen (82.9% vs. 70.7%, p = 0.0337) and increasing the proportion of patients who achieved sustained clinical improvement (41.5% vs. 31.7%). The response rate in the 0.2 mg/kg group was relatively increased by 16.0% compared with the placebo group (53.7% vs. 46.3%). Meplazumab also reduced the viral loads and multiple cytokine levels. Compare with the placebo group, the 0.3 mg/kg significantly increased the virus negative rate by 40.6% (p = 0.0363) and reduced IL-8 level (p = 0.0460); the 0.2 mg/kg increased the negative conversion rate by 36.9%, and reduced IL-4 (p = 0.0365) and IL-8 levels (p = 0.0484). In this study, the adverse events occurred at a comparable rate across the four groups, with no unexpected safety findings observed. In conclusion, meplazumab promoted COVID-19 convalescence and reduced mortality, viral load, and cytokine levels in severe COVID-19 population with good safety profile.

Publication types

  • Randomized Controlled Trial
  • Multicenter Study
  • Clinical Trial, Phase II
  • Clinical Trial, Phase III
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • COVID-19*
  • Cytokines
  • Humans
  • Interleukin-8
  • SARS-CoV-2

Substances

  • meplazumab
  • Interleukin-8
  • Cytokines

Associated data

  • ClinicalTrials.gov/NCT04586153