Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. said Friday it is expected to begin this summer a study of a plasma-derived therapy for adult patients of the novel coronavirus with its global partners.

The international alliance involving 10 plasma companies, such as Biotest and CSL Behring, will work with the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases in the United States to test the therapy's safety and efficacy.

The study uses blood from patients who have recovered from the pneumonia-causing respiratory disease, according to Takeda.

"Hyperimmune globulin therapy has the potential to be one of the earliest treatment options for COVID-19," Bill Mezzanotte, executive vice president of CSL Behring, said in a statement.

The group, formed to accelerate the development and distribution of the treatment for COVID-19 patients, is calling for donations of convalescent plasma.

"We now have enough plasma to initiate clinical manufacturing, but more is needed to ensure both speed and scale," said Julie Kim, president of Takeda's Plasma-Derived Therapies Business Unit and co-leader of the alliance.

==Kyodo

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