The drug previously showed promise during the SARS epidemic of 2003 and works to stimulate the body’s immune system.

A Marion County-based drug company is part of the effort to combat the new coronavirus causing panic around the world.

One of AIM ImmunoTech’s drugs is currently in Japan, where that country’s National Institute of Infectious Diseases will start testing it as a possible treatment for the virus that causes COVID-19.

"Japan agreed not 10 days ago to do this initial testing of our drug in vitro," said Tom Equels, CEO of AIM ImmunoTech.

The drug, known as Ampligen, first showed promise in the early 2000s as a treatment for SARS, a contagious and sometimes fatal respiratory illness caused by a coronavirus.

"All the mice that received Ampligen survived. 100%," Equels said.

But that illness has not returned in major numbers since the original epidemic in 2003.

The new coronavirus is very similar to SARS, which could mean the drug offers can be effective in preventing or lessening symptoms.

"In the key area of viral replication, they are almost identical," Equels said, comparing the two viruses.

Because the drug has already gone through animal trials, if initial lab tests prove effective it could mean a quicker path toward human trials, he said.

The drug is not a vaccine. Instead, it activates a patient’s immune system to fight certain cancers, viral diseases and disorders of the immune system, according to the publicly-traded company’s website.

"It activates a cascade of type 1 interferons and lights up a hundred different genes related to the immune response. That’s why it works as an anti-viral and anti-tumor," Equels said.

The drug is approved for use in chronic fatigue syndrome in Argentina, and the company is preparing for a commercial rollout in that country.

Around the world, more than 125,000 COVID-19 have been reported with more than 4,600 deaths, according to the latest numbers from the World Health Organization.

In Florida, there are 51 cases with two deaths as of Friday afternoon, according to the Florida Department of Health.

— Contact Carlos E. Medina at 867-4157 or cmedina@starbanner.com