READDI CEO joins global leaders in Brazil to push for pandemic readiness

By READDI, August 8, 2024 — An unprecedented Dengue surge across Latin America heightened urgency as 350 experts from governments, civil society, industry and health organizations around the world gathered in Rio de Janeiro July 29 for the Global Pandemic Preparedness Summit 2024. The meeting was co-hosted by the Ministry of Health of Brazil, which holds the G20 presidency; Fundação Oswaldo Cruz (Fiocruz), Latin America’s largest biomedical research institution; and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI).

Summit conversations centered around efforts to ramp up disease surveillance, regional manufacturing and access to health tools and countermeasures that could combat epidemic and pandemic threats in as little as 100 days. READDI is a core implementation partner in the 100 Days Mission, embraced by the G7 and G20 in 2021 to ensure the global availability of diagnostics, therapeutics and vaccines within the first 100 days of a pandemic threat. READDI has emerged as a leader in the therapeutics R&D space.

During the summit, the World Health Organization made news by issuing the WHO R&D Blueprint for Epidemics, a report listing the diseases of greatest epidemic and pandemic threat. The report, the first R&D Blueprint since 2018, prioritizes virus families of pandemic concern, which aligns with READDI’s long-standing approach.

“READDI’s goal is to develop two broad-spectrum antivirals for each high-risk virus family,” said READDI CEO Jimmy Rosen. “We’re pleased at the growing enthusiasm among this esteemed group for broad-spectrum small molecule therapeutics as an essential medical countermeasure.”

Therapeutics are designed to reduce mortality and morbidity during viral outbreaks, but they also ease hospital overcrowding and, when deployed effectively, slow viral spread — benefits that keep children in school and economies functioning.

Another centerpiece of READDI’s approach — developing shelf-stable, easy-to-distribute pills — is equitable global access. In a push for greater equity, organizations based in the Global South signed the Rio de Janeiro Declaration, which calls for stronger collaboration between partners within the Global North and Global South to overcome disparities in access to health tools and countermeasures in low- and middle-income countries.

When it comes to antiviral therapeutics, both regions are lacking.

“The reality is we don’t have the pipeline we need in terms of therapeutics. But the good news is that we can do something about it,” said Philippe Duneton, executive director of Unitaid, a global health initiative focused on low- and middle-income countries. “Developing therapeutics and clinical care requires strong coalitions.”

To that end, READDI is working towards three next steps: 1) establishing virus family working groups, 2) launching pilot projects for two virus families of pandemic concern and 3) building a data repository for antiviral researchers.

“READDI is collaborating with colleagues in discovery and development to ensure that a robust antiviral pipeline is comprised of potential therapeutics that will be affordable and accessible to everyone who needs them, where they need them, when they need them,” Rosen said. “Creating a coalition is a critical step toward meeting the goals put forth at the Rio Summit.”