Last summer, shares of Synairgen skyrocketed 300% on a study showing its inhaled form of interferon beta-1a being developed to treat COVID-19 lessened the chance that patients would progress to a severe form of the virus. But there was a major shadow hanging over the results: Interferon is known to increase levels of the cell surface protein ACE2, which serves as the entry point for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. That sparked fears that interferon-based treatments would ultimately fail in the treatment of the coronavirus.

Now, researchers led by the University of Southampton, which is collaborating with Synairgen in the development of its drug, have discovered that interferon raises levels of a short form of ACE2 that doesn’t allow SARS-CoV-2 to enter cells. In fact, it may have a protective effect, the team reported in the journal Nature Genetics. Source: Fierce Biotech 11/1/2021