Scalable nanoprecipitation of niclosamide and in vivo demonstration of long-acting delivery after intramuscular injection

The spread of SARS-CoV-2 across the world requires the formation of a range of interventions that include immunomodulatory or antiviral therapeutics and repurposing of existing drug compounds is an important strategy to rapidly identify possible options. Niclosamide is a cheap and generic drug compound with a proven in vitro ability to inhibit viral replication of SARS-CoV-2; this drug also has known poor oral bioavailability due to very low water solubility. Here, we demonstrate the nanoparticle formulation of niclosamide using a new, cheap and scalable process to enable long-acting injectable administration and show extended circulating drug exposure in vivo over 28 days using a rodent model after depot injection.