The Israeli health authorities have signed a supply agreement for the investigational Covid-19 plasma-derived Immunoglobulin (IgG), to be supplied by Kamada Ltd., a biopharmaceutical company which is partnered with Kedrion Biopharma in the development of the new anti-Covid-19 therapy.
The Israeli company will manufacture the product, to be supplied to the Ministry of Health, from convalescent plasma collected by the Israeli National Blood Services, a division of Magen David Adom (MADA), and additional Israeli medical institutions. The initial order to be supplied in the next few months is sufficient to treat approximately 500 hospitalized patients.
“We are pleased to work in collaboration with Kamada on the development and global distribution of this important therapy, which we hope will help patients in Israel and around the world,” said Paolo Marcucci, chairman of Kedrion Biopharma.
In April 2020 Kedrion and Kamada established a global collaboration for the development, manufacturing, and distribution of a plasma-derived IgG product as a potential treatment for Covid-19.
The companies’ U.S. clinical development of a plasma-derived IgG product as a potential Covid-19 treatment is expected to begin in early 2021 pending IND acceptance by the FDA.
Val Romberg, Kedrion’s CEO, said the news from Israel was “a welcome milestone” and added, “The progress made in Israel is a positive and encouraging sign for patients everywhere.”
Kedrion, in collaboration with Kamada, is continuing with the development of new anti-Covid therapies together with its research partner Columbia University Irving Medical Center in New York. In July, Kedrion announced it was forming a research partnership with Columbia University Medical Center that is aimed at helping to develop a new plasma-based anti-Covid therapy.
