Jubilant Life secures rights to produce anti-viral Remdesvir, touted as a COVID treatment

Amid the race to find an emergency cure and treatment for the novel Coronavirus, Jubilant Life Sciences Limited has entered into an agreement with biopharmaceutical company Gilead Sciences for Remdesivir, which is being seen as a potential therapy for COVID. Remdesivir is a broad-spectrum antiviral medication developed by Gilead. Currently, it is being tested as a treatment for COVID-19 and has been authorized for emergency use in the U.S. and approved for use in Japan for people with severe symptoms.

In India, Jubilant Life Sciences Limited has received the rights to technology transfer of Remdesvir from Gilead to scale up production of the medication so as to expedite its access to the COVID patients. 

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Trial results of Remdesivir 

According to a statement from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Coronavirus drug trial results suggested a survival benefit, with a mortality rate of 8% for the group receiving Remdesivir versus 11.6% for the placebo group. The mortality benefit of Remdesivir has not yet reached statistical significance.

Claiming that the drug will be the 'standard of care'  Dr. Anthony Fauci who is the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases in the US, said, “When you know a drug works, you have to let people in the placebo group know so they can take it.

Gilead Sciences had earlier informed that the study had met its primary endpoint but did not provide further details. The previous drug that had created a ruffle, Hydroxychloroquine, was only recommended as a prophylactic in high-risk persons; it has been shown to have adverse results in numerous cases. 

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