Dr. Ricardo Battaglino from the University of Minnesota claims that “that apilimod is five times more effective in treating cell cultures with COVID-19 compared to remdesivir.” Battaglino coordinated with a team in Chicago to develop their own version of apilimod that would be 99% pure and geared toward treating COVID-19.

Researchers working with cells in culture found that the amount needed of their “apilomod-like” drug to successfully block the virus is one-fifth to one-tenth of what is currently needed when using remdesivir. The results of the study suggests that the drug may help treat patients with severe cases, while also being able to prevent the progression from mild to severe symptoms. Furthermore, with the inevitability of more coronavirus outbreaks in the future, Battaaglino believes that apilimod “is going to be effective against any coronavirus because the way it works is not specific to virus strain.”