Brazil’s Bolsonaro Seeks Israeli Coronavirus ‘Miracle Drug’

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro will seek emergency authorization to acquire a new Israeli-developed coronavirus treatment for moderate-to-serious cases that has been dubbed a “miracle drug” by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The  EXO-CD24 nasal spray has shown outstanding success in phase 1 trials, with all patients recovering within a matter of days.

“EXO-CD24 is a nasal spray developed by the Ichilov Medical Center in Israel, with nearly 100 percent effectiveness — 29 out of 30 — against COVID in serious cases,” Bolsonaro tweeted.

Two days earlier, he spoke on the phone with Netanyahu to request the medicine developed by Prof. Nadir Arber. The drug was administered to patients whose conditions ranged from moderate to critical. All 30 recovered within three to five days.

Netanyahu held a meeting last week with Arber about his “wonder drug.”

“If this succeeds, it will be huge, simply huge. This is of global significance. This is amazing,” Netanyahu said.

“I wish you success. If you need anything, say it and we will help you. This little thing could change the fate of humanity. This is amazing. Good luck.”

Arber noted the project involved out-of-the-box thinking and explained the drug could be produced quickly and efficiently, with the potential to assist poor countries that don’t yet have access to vaccines.

“We can produce this drug effectively, efficiently, and cheaply, so this could be a partial solution for countries that can’t currently afford a vaccination,” he said. “This is our duty, to bring the message of hope to the entire world,” he said.

The medicine fights the so-called cytokine storm in which the immune system attacks organs by delivering a protein called CD24 to the lungs.

“This protein is located on the surface of cells and has a well known and important role in regulating the immune system,” said Dr. Shiran Shapira, the director of the lab in which Arber’s invention is being tested.

“The preparation is inhaled once a day for a few minutes, for five days,” Arber, who has been researching CD24 for decades, said.

“The preparation is directed straight to the heart of the storm — the lungs — so unlike other formulas… which selectively restrain a certain cytokine, or operate widely but cause many serious side effects, EXO-CD24 is administered locally, works broadly and without side effects.”

Ichilov director Roni Gamzu said the research “is advanced and sophisticated and may save coronavirus patients. The results of the phase 1 trial are excellent and give us all confidence in the method [Arber] has been researching in his lab for many years.”

“I am proud that at Ichilov we are… possibly bringing a blue and white remedy to a terrible global pandemic.”

The game-changing medicine is set to start a Phase 2 trial, The Times of Israel reported.

After meeting Arber, Netanyahu met with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, who expressed great interest in the drug and also offered that a leading Greek hospital take part in the clinical trials in the framework of bilateral cooperation.

“I asked Professor Arber to come to my office today. He did. Two hours later my friend Prime Minister Mitsotakis comes to my office and more or less the first question he asked me was, ‘Can you tell me about this miracle drug?’” said Netanyahu.

“We called Professor Arber and Prime Minister Mitsotakis volunteered that Greece, their leading hospital, would partake in the clinical trials and I hope that we can approve this because I think this is an example of our cooperation in forging ahead to new areas.”