DRDO Covid-19 drug cleared for emergency use

The Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) has approved therapeutic application of the drug 2deoxy-D-glucose (2-DG) for the treatment of Covid patients. The drug has been developed by Institute of Nuclear Medicine and Allied Sciences (INMAS), a lab of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), in collaboration with Dr Reddy’s Laboratories (DRL), Hyderabad. “Clinical trial results

have shown that this molecule helps in faster recovery of hospitalised patients and reduces supplemental oxygen dependence. Higher proportion of patients treated with 2-DG showed RT-PCR negative conversion in Covid patients. The drug will be of immense benefit to the people suffering from Covid-19,” government officials said. The drug was on May 1 granted permission for Emergency Use as adjunct therapy in moderate to severe Covid-19 patients.

During the Phase-III clinical trial conducted on 220 patients between December 2020 to March 2021 at 27 Covid hospitals in Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, a significantly higher proportion of patients improved symptomatically and became free from supplemental oxygen dependence by day-three, indicating an early relief from oxygen therapy/dependence, the DRDO statement added.

The drug comes in powder form in a sachet which is taken orally by dissolving it in water. It accumulates in the virus infected cells and prevents virus growth by stopping viral synthesis and energy production. Its selective accumulation in virally infected cells makes this drug unique. Being a generic molecule and analogue of glucose, it can be easily produced and made available in plenty in the country, officials added.