Trial of Tocilizumab for Treatment of Severe COVID-19: ARCHITECTS (ARCHITECTS)

February 5, 2026 updated by: Queen's Medical Center

A Randomized, Controlled Clinical Trial of the Safety and Efficacy of Tocilizumab for the Treatment of Severe COVID-19

The overall objective is to evaluate the clinical efficacy and safety of tocilizumab relative to placebo among approximately 300 hospitalized adult patients who have severe COVID-19. The study will be a 2 arm double blinded comparison between tocilizumab 8 mg/kg and matching placebo IV. The dose may be repeated in 8-12 hours if clinical symptoms worsens, (e.g. increase in oxygen requirements). Participants will be followed for 28 days.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Terminated

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
20

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Phase 3

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.

Study Contact Backup

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Hawaii
      • Honolulu, Hawaii, United States, 96813
        • Queen's Medical Center

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years to 95 years (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • ii. Hospitalized with COVID-19 pneumonia, based on chest X-ray or CT scan AND iii. Evidence of hyperinflammation: IL-6>40pg/mL (if available) OR CRP >2 mg/dL OR ferritin >2000 ng/mL AND iv. One or more of the following: impending need for requiring invasive or non-invasive mechanical ventilation OR shock requiring vasopressor (without evidence of bacterial / fungal infection) OR need for extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) OR severe, refractor ARDS (PaO2/FiO2<200 mmHg)

Exclusion Criteria:

Known severe allergic reactions to tocilizumab or other monoclonal antibodies

  • Active tuberculosis infection based on history
  • Suspected active bacterial, fungal, viral, or other infection (besides COVID-19)
  • In the opinion of the investigator, progression to death is imminent and inevitable within the next 24 hours, irrespective of the provision of treatments
  • Have received oral anti-rejection or immunomodulatory drugs (including tocilizumab) with the past 6 months
  • Participating in other drug clinical trials (participation in COVID-19 trials allowed)
  • Self-reported pregnant or breastfeeding
  • Any serious medical condition or abnormality of clinical laboratory tests that, in the investigator's judgment, precludes the patient's safe participation in and completion of the study
  • Alanine aminotransferase (ALT) or aspartate aminotransferase (AST) > 10 x upper limit of normal (ULN) detected within 24 hours at baseline
  • Absolute neutrophil count (ANC) < 1000/mL at baseline
  • Platelet count < 50,000/mL at baseline

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Double

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Experimental: Tocilizumab (TCZ) Arm
Participants will receive 1 intravenous (IV) infusion of TCZ, dosed at 8 mg/kg, up to a maximum dose 800 mg. Up to 1 additional dose may be given if clinical symptoms worsen.
Drug: Tocilizumab
Participants will receive 1 dose of IV TCZ. 1 additional dose may be given if clinical symptoms worsen.
Other Names:
  • Actemra
Placebo Comparator: Placebo Arm
Participants will receive 1 IV infusion of placebo matched to TCZ. Up to 1 additional dose may be given if clinical symptoms worsen.
Drug: Placebo
Participants will receive 1 dose of IV placebo matched to TCZ. Up to 1 additional dose may be given if clinical symptoms worsen.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Clinical status (on a 7-point ordinal scale) at day 28
Time Frame: up to day 28

Clinical Status 7-point ordinal scale:

  1. Not hospitalized, no limitations on activities
  2. Not hospitalized, limitation on activities
  3. Hospitalized, not requiring supplemental oxygen
  4. Hospitalized, requiring supplemental oxygen
  5. Hospitalized, on non-invasive ventilation or high flow oxygen devices
  6. Hospitalized, on invasive mechanical ventilation or ECMO
  7. Death
up to day 28

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Clinical improvement
Time Frame: up to day 28
ii. Time to clinical improvement, defined as a National Early Warning Score (NEWS) of < 2 maintained for 24 hours iii. Time to clinical improvement of at least 2 categories relative to baseline on a 7-category ordinal scale of clinical status
up to day 28
Mechanical Ventilation
Time Frame: up to day 28
iv. Incidence of mechanical ventilation v. Ventilator-free days
up to day 28
Oxygenation
Time Frame: up to day 28
vi. Duration of time on supplemental oxygen
up to day 28

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Queen's Medical Center

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Todd Seto, MD, The Queen's Medical Center

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
June 12, 2020

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
March 31, 2021

Study Completion (Actual)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
March 31, 2021

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
June 1, 2020

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
June 1, 2020

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
June 2, 2020

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
February 10, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
February 5, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
February 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • RA-2020-019

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

Yes

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.

Yes

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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