KUALA LUMPUR (Sept 7): Ho Wah Genting Bhd has submitted a research protocol to the Ministry of Health (MoH) to evaluate the effectiveness of oral polio vaccine (OPV) as a preventive protection against the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

"The main objective of the research protocol is to assess the cross-reactivity between the poliovirus vaccination-induced antibodies and SARS-CoV-2 virus and evaluate the effectiveness of OPV as a preventive protection against Covid-19," said Ho Wah.

The group said the study will adopt prospective experimental design and will be conducted upon approval received.

"Participants will be screened and selected based on specific inclusion criteria using convenience sampling," the group added in a bourse filing.

Ho Wah said its wholly-owned unit HWGB Biotech Sdn Bhd submitted the research protocol to MoH's National Medical Research Register today.

It will be fully funded by HWGB Biotech, which will also hold the full rights on the clinical trial and other related matters.

Ho Wah Genting plans to conduct the research at an appointed private clinic upon MoH's review and approval. The trial process includes vaccination being served to participants, followed by blood and stool sample collection, serological testing and results reporting.

According to the group, the research protocol is in line with Ho Wah's strategic implementation plan to expand into healthcare-related business.

"The research protocol will enable the development of a vaccine or similar treatment mechanism for the purposes of preventing diseases, including but not limited to new indications which propose the use of existing poliomyelitis virus vaccines for prevention of Covid-19," it added.

Ho Wah Genting's share price settled nine sen or 10.65% higher today at 93.5 sen, valuing the group at RM488.04 million. Some 19.46 million units were traded.