Over the years, human beings have used their skill-set in a lot of different ways. Now, while each permutation has had a unique dimension to it, they all revolve around the same goal, which is to help us become more complete. With such a progressive dynamic in place, you are always likely to stumble upon some ingenious by-products along the way. Human beings, on their part, will end up witnessing plenty, and yet the only one that went on to redefine the very meaning of our lives was technology. Even before it grew into a full-blown phenomenon, technology would stand out from the pack rather seamlessly. This was a big reason why we continued to tinker with it until the dynamics were changed forever. As soon as the breakthrough came, the world saw its structure taking an unprecedented shape. The sheer scale of the transformation would leave an impact on several areas, including our global healthcare setup. Technology and healthcare link-up wasn’t something that had everyone on board right away, but it will eventually prove to be a game-changer. With human healthcare no longer governed by some obsolete methodologies, we were suddenly rushing towards a much better future. Nevertheless, even after getting there, we’ll continue to pursue higher altitudes, and Pfizer’s latest acquisition doesn’t tell you anything different.
Pharmaceuticals giant, Pfizer has officially acquired ReViral Therapeutics in a deal worth over $525 million. According to certain reports, the deal focuses on expanding Pfizer’s reach around respiratory syncytial virus, which is a disease that kills nearly 160,000 people every year. Currently, there is no FDA-approved vaccine for it, hence giving companies like Pfizer an even bigger incentive to try and be the first one to the party. Although Pfizer already has a RSV vaccine in the pipeline, ReViral adds two more antiviral drugs to its bid, with each one having a unique approach. For instance, Sisunatovir is an oral drug that blocks the fusion of RSV virus to the host cell, whereas on the other hand, the second program is structured to stop RSV replication by targeting N protein of the virus. Interestingly enough, the available details also hint at a third program, which combines these two approaches.
“The proposed acquisition of ReViral’s pipeline of therapeutic candidates is complementary to our efforts to advance the first vaccine candidate to help protect against this harmful disease,” said Annaliesa Anderson, senior vice president and chief scientific officer, bacterial vaccines and hospital, at Pfizer. “Combining the capabilities and expertise of our organizations will enable us to further the clinical development of a potential therapy for those with RSV disease.”
If we talk about the timelines, Sisunatovir has reached mid-stage clinical testing. The second program is said to be around Phase 1 testing, and the speculated third bid is still in preclinical development. Pfizer’s own drug is now in Phase 3 testing, so when you partner it with the new additions, it should significantly help the company, as the competition for RSV treatment goes full throttle.
