Coronavirus: Antiviral drug remdesivir shows promise for treating COVID-19
- Remdesivir, an antiviral drug, has shown a remarkable promise for treating COVID-19, a new study by the US government reveals
- Dr Anthony Fauci, an American top infectious-disease expert, said available data shows remdesivir has a clear-cut significant positive effect in diminishing the time to recovery
- Fauci said a clinical trial showed people taking remdesivir recovered in 11 days on average, adding that the study also revealed patients who took the drug are less likely to die from COVID-19
There could be light at the end of the tunnel after researchers said an experimental drug showed promise of treating the dreaded novel coronavirus.
According to data from a new study cited by the United States government, the drug, remdesivir, was found to shorten the recovery time for COVID-19 patients.
Source: UGC
The study revealed remdesivir interfered with the replication of some viruses, including the SARS-CoV-2 virus responsible for the current pandemic.
“The data shows that remdesivir has a clear-cut significant positive effect in diminishing the time to recovery,” Dr Anthony Fauci, the US' top infectious-disease expert said during a White House press conference on Wednesday, April 29.
Fauci said a clinical trial of more than a thousand people showed people taking remdesivir recovered in 11 days on average, compared to 15 days for those on a placebo.
"Although a 31% improvement doesn’t seem like a knockout 100%, it is a very important proof of concept. What it has proven is that a drug can block this virus," he said.
Source: UGC
The study also revealed patients who took the drug were less likely to die from COVID-19.
A new antibody test to check whether someone is infected with the virus, and said to be 99 per cent accurate, was also certified for use across Europe.
Global diagnostics specialists Abbott, with a UK base, said it expects to ship millions of the laboratory-based lab tests across Europe by the end of May 2020, the Independent reported.
"The test tells you whether you have ever been exposed to the virus and generated an immune response. What it can’t do is tell you whether you’re immune or not.
“Having antibodies in and of itself does not give you protective immunity, it might do, but we don’t know that," Dr Simon Clarke, associate professor in cellular microbiology at the University of Reading said.
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In another related report, a German pharmaceutical company, BioNTech, has started testing a potential vaccine for the new coronavirus on human volunteers.
According to Al Jazeera, BioNTech said on Wednesday, April 29, that 12 participants of a clinical trial in Germany received doses of the vaccine candidate BNT162 since April 23.
Legit.ng gathers that the German company is working with the United States (US)-based company, Pfizer.
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