Oral Immunostimulant Could Improve Effectiveness of COVID-19 Vaccines by Increasing IgG Binding Antibody Responses

Preclinical studies of an oral integrin activator that promotes cell adhesion have demonstrated that it significantly increases IgG binding antibodies with a vaccine targeting SARS-CoV-2 (COV2) and can be used as an immunostimulant for any COVID-19 vaccine.

The oral integrin activator, 7HP349 developed by 7 Hills Pharma (Houston, TX, USA) has the potential not only to augment the vaccines’ effectiveness, but also accelerate immune system response, allow for dose sparing and reduce or eliminate the need for boosters.


7HP349 is 7 Hills Pharma’s lead product candidate in a platform of patent-protected small molecule integrin activators that significantly enhance cell adhesion, which is essential for producing an immune response. The company is working to develop 7HP349 as an oral immunostimulant for COVID-19 and seasonal influenza vaccinations. In preclinical studies, the product has shown effectiveness in augmenting influenza, tuberculosis, and Chagas vaccines, and has demonstrated a positive safety profile.

“We expect our cell adhesion agents will greatly enhance the efficacy of emerging vaccines against this coronavirus,” said 7 Hills Pharma President and CEO Upendra Marathi, Ph.D., MBA. “Although this approach is potentially applicable for all ages, we are targeting older subjects who are at greater risk because of their lower immune responses to vaccines.”

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