On May 11, 2020, Arbutus Biopharma announced the establishment of a new research initiative focused on the identification of novel therapies to combat COVID-19.

The company announced preliminary results from an ongoing Phase 1a/1b clinical trial for our lead compound in March (AB-729) that demonstrated it is a potent RNAi agent capable of reducing HBsAg plasma levels. Arbtus expected additional results from the week 12 portion of the 60 mg single-dose cohort in the second quarter of 2020.