Leading Biosciences hopes that its drug will keep digestive enzymes from spilling into the bloodstream and triggering the airway inflammation seen in COVID-19

COVID-19’s worst symptoms are felt in the lungs — where the airways of some patients fill with dead cells and fluid, triggering a deadly spiral of inflammation. A local biotech company thinks it can treat these symptoms by targeting a completely different part of the body: your gut.

Leading Biosciences received permission from the Food and Drug Administration on Friday to test whether its drug, designed to shore up the intestine’s natural barrier, helps severe COVID-19 patients breathe on their own and recover sooner.

It’s an unorthodox-sounding approach, but it’s based on the idea that many diseases — including COVID-19 — are connected to what happens in the gut… Continue reading.