Back in May, Sorrento Therapeutics (NASDAQ:SRNE) captivated investor attention after it claimed the discovery of an antibody that can provide “100% inhibition” against COVID-19. In fact, the company’s senior vice president, Dr. Mark Brunswick, made the following statement in an interview by Fox News: “So, if we were approved [by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)] today, everyone who gets that antibody can go back to work and have no fear of catching COVID-19.” Sorrento’s CEO, Dr. Henri Ji, reiterated this attitude:
“We want to emphasize there is a cure. There is a solution that works 100 percent. If we have the neutralizing antibody in your body, you don’t need the social distancing. You can open up a society without fear.”
Fast-forward five months, and 12 coronavirus vaccine candidates are in phase 3 trials. At the same time, however, Sorrento’s antibody candidates are still in the preclinical or very early stages of clinical trials. The picture is becoming clear, and it looks like the rest of the company’s coronavirus pipeline will face stiff competition if its drugs are approved. Today, let’s take a look as to why Sorrento is definitely not a coronavirus stock you want to add to your portfolio.
Author: Canan Schuman, PharmD/PhD
Canan Schumann is Chief Editor for Axxiem and for Axxiem's blog "BiotechOntheWeb". When not writing for Axxiem, Canan works as a Clinical Research Scientist II at the Research and Development Department at Molecular Testing Labs, developing endpoint assays for the detection of infectious disease and cancer. Canan currently resides in Portland, Oregon, where he received his Honors Bachelor of Science (HBS), Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD.), and his Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Biopharmaceutics at Oregon State University.