Wize Pharma Inc. on May 18, 2020 announced that on May 13, 2020, Bonus BioGroup reported preliminary pre-clinical results in an animal model for its novel drug product candidate MesenCure, specifically developed to treat life-threatening acute respiratory distress in COVID-19 patients and pneumonia patients. Bonus reported that following treatment with MesenCure, the microscopic appearance of treated lungs was similar to healthy lungs, and a significant improvement in additional parameters was achieved. Bonus BioGroup reported that it is developing MesenCure specifically to treat the respiratory symptoms of COVID-19 patients by reducing the inflammatory process in the respiratory system, allowing the injured lungs to recover. MesenCure consists of activated mesenchymal cells that are isolated from the adipose tissue of healthy donors. Following intravenous transfusion, the activated cells are expected to reach the lungs and act to reduce inflammation, and alleviate respiratory and other symptoms. This preclinical study was conducted on an animal model suffering from severe respiratory distress symptoms similar to those of COVID-19 patients, including massive infiltration of immune cells to the lungs, a marked increase in fluid in the lungs, and a decrease in blood lymphocytes cell counts. Treatment with MesenCure reduced Pulmonary edema (fluid) in the lungs by 47% compared to untreated subjects, and demonstrated the ability to significantly increase blood lymphocyte counts, which play a key role in fighting viruses. According to Bonus BioGroup, these results indicate the ability of MesenCure to relieve acute pneumonia and to alleviate life-threatening lymphopenia in COVID-19 patients.