TopChineselabfilespatent forUSdrug to combat virus
Gilead, which makes the drug remdevisir, shipping doses to treat 500 patients initially
BEIJING: Researchers from a top Chinese lab have applied to patent a US-made drug they found to be effective in pre-clinical tests in treating the novel Coronavirus.
The research led by the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) found that two drugs, remdesivir and the generic chloroquine, could inhibit or check the virus. The WIV is the only institute in China to have a bio-safety level 4 laboratory, equipped to deal with the deadliest pathogens in the world including Ebola and the Coronavirus family.
Researchers from top Chinese institutes including the WIV and the Chinese Academy of Military Sciences made the patent application on January 21, WIV said on its website on Tuesday.The researchers also published a paper in the medical journal Cell Research on Tuesday, explaining the efficacy of the two drugs.
“Our findings reveal that remdesivir and chloroquine are highly effective in the control of 2019-nCoV (novel Coronavirus) infection in vitro. Since these compounds have been used in human patients with a safety track record and shown to be effective against various ailments, we suggest that they should be assessed in human patients suffering from the novel coronavirus disease,” the paper’s recommendation said. “Remdesivir has been recently recognised as a promising antiviral drug against a wide array of RNA viruses (including SARS/MERSCoV5) infection in cultured cells, mice and nonhuman primate (NHP) models. It is currently under clinical development for the treatment of Ebola virus infection,” it said.
“Chloroquine is a cheap and a safe drug that has been used for more than 70 years and, therefore, it is potentially clinically applicable against the 2019nCoV,” it added.
China is already capable of manufacturing chloroquine and now wants to start using remdesivir to treat Coronavirus patients.
The WIV said it made the patent application out of “national interest” and will not exercise its patent rights if foreign pharmaceutical firms work together with China to curb the outbreak that’s already killed close to 500 people and infected nearly 2,5000.
Official Xinhua news agency reported that remdesivir has completed the registration and approval of clinical trials, and the first batch of cases is now in place. The first group of severe pneumonia patients infected with the new coronavirus will be given the drug on Thursday, it said.