• The reason we are trying to develop antiviral drugs is because viruses are one of the leading causes of the greatest loss of life in human history.
• In the case of COVID-19, which broke out in Wuhan, China in December 2019, 7 million to 35 million people have died so far.
• Even during World War I, up to 100 million people died from the Spanish flu.

Viral Diseases? The Most Fearsome Enemy of Mankind!

• In particular, the viruses that are causing the most damage to humanity in the 20th and 21st centuries include COVID-19, Ebola, influenza, Zika, and AIDS.
• Surprisingly, all of these are RNA viruses.

• RNA viruses are problematic because mutations occur more frequently than DNA viruses.

• Now, let’s look at the problems related to RNA viruses and commercially available antiviral drugs.
• Most antiviral drugs currently on the market target viral proteins.
• The problem, as mentioned earlier, is that RNA viruses undergo frequent mutations.
• This causes the viral protein, which is the target of commercially available antiviral drugs, to mutate.
• Accordingly, virus-targeting antiviral drugs currently on the market have reduced or lost efficacy against mutant strains.

• Host-directed antiviral drugs can solve all of these problems of virus-targeting antivirals at once.

• The basic concept of host-directed broad-spectrum antiviral drugs is as follows.
• All viruses can only multiply within host cells. When a virus proliferates, it must use various factors from the host. Currently, substances that control host factors essential for the virus life cycle can be developed as antiviral drugs.
• In particular, we are discovering host factors commonly used by various viruses. We can develop a new concept of innovative host-targeted broad-spectrum antiviral drugs to treat mutant strains and emerging new viruses.
• In conclusion, what our company is developing is a host-directed, broad-spectrum antiviral drug.

• Our host-directed broad-spectrum antiviral drugs have unique differentiation compared to competitor products.
• In other words, competitor antiviral drugs are virus-targeting drugs, so their efficacy against mutant strains and new viruses is reduced or lost.
• However, what our company is developing has the distinction of maintaining efficacy even against mutant strains and new emerging viruses.