Emmes today announced that it conducted the data and statistical analysis for the third iteration of the Adaptive COVID-19 Treatment Trial (ACTT-3), using its proprietary Advantage eClinical system.  The ACTT-3 trial assessed the efficacy and safety of interferon beta-1a plus remdesivir compared to remdesivir alone in hospitalized adults with COVID-19.

Preliminary data from prior small studies had suggested a potential benefit of interferon beta-1a, a natural antiviral component of the immune system, for COVID-19 patients.  The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health, sponsored a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial that included 969 participants at 63 hospitals in five countries, including the U.S. to evaluate the combination of interferon beta-1a and remdesivir.

The study concluded that the use of both Interferon beta-1a and remdesivir was not superior to remdesivir alone in patients hospitalized with COVID-based pneumonia.  The results also indicated that the subgroup of participants receiving high-flow oxygen at randomization had worse outcomes after treatment with interferon beta-1a compared with those who received placebo. Michelle Green, Dr. Mat Makowski and Jennifer Ferreira co-authored a report about the ACTT-3 study that was published online on October 18, 2021, in The Lancet Respiratory Medicine.

Green, an Emmes vice president and Emmes’ ACTT-3 project manager, said that about 10 percent of the Emmes workforce has participated in the ACTT studies. 

“Working on this research to address the best ways to treat COVID-19 is a source of great pride for our company,” she said.  

Emmes Chief Executive Officer Dr. Christine Dingivan said, “We have served as a Statistical and Data Coordinating Center for NIAID’s Division of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases for more than two decades.  Our Emmes team looks forward to continuing as active contributors to building the body of knowledge on COVID-19 treatments and vaccines.”