NPAU), today announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Altum Pharmaceuticals (âAltumâ) has entered into a Letter of Intent with Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile to conduct a randomized placebo-controlled trial (âIN2COVIDâ) in COVID-19 patients testing Altumâs proprietary inhaled interferon alpha-2b product, AP-003. The trial is projected to start in Q2 of this year and be completed by end of Q3. Interferon alpha-2b (âIFN-a2bâ), a Type I interferon, is a naturally occurring protein integral to the bodyâs first line of anti-viral defenses. There is evidence that coronaviruses, such as SARS-CoV-2, have mechanisms which suppress IFN-a2b production, allowing the virus to evade the innate immune system. Multiple clinical analyses show a significant link between deficiency in Type 1 interferon and development of severe COVID-19 disease. There is also accumulating evidence from preclinical studies that coronavirus replication is blocked by the addition of exogenous INF-a2b. An exploratory study in Wuhan, China, in COVID-19 patients, showed that patients treated with inhaled IFN-a2b had a more rapid rate of viral clearance than patients in the comparator arm who did not receive inhaled IFN-a2b.