The International Consortium on Anti-Virals (ICAV) is a not-for-profit drug development organization dedicated to the discovery and development of anti-viral therapies for neglected and emerging diseases.
ICAV is an institutional innovation that addresses the shortage of anti-virals by connecting promising academic research directly to an experienced drug development team, bridging the so-called innovation gap. ICAV provides the expertise and knowledge to complete the “translational research” required to convert academic opportunities into the mid- to late-stage compounds desired by the industry.
COVID-19
The current COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic is the worst pandemic since the 1918 Spanish flu. The 1918 pandemic killed more than 50 million people world-wide. COVID-19 is caused by a coronavirus called SARS-CoV-2 that is similar to the SARS virus of 2003 (SARS-CoV-1) and the MERS-CoV and MERS-CoV. Thanks to rapid world-wide communication links, most countries have implemented rigorous polices to curb the spread. SARS-CoV-2 has, worldwide, infected 4 million and killed 250,000 people in the first six months. However, with many parts of the world only now reporting cases, the final total remains unknown.
