New Delhi: The Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) gave a restricted emergency use approval to the Zydus Cadila’s ‘Virafin’ for treating the patients showing moderate COVID-19 symptoms. Zydus claimed 91.15 % of patients treated showed RT-PCR negative by day 7 and the treatment significantly reduces the hours of supplemental oxygen in the patients
Virafin is a pegylated interferon alpha-2b(PegIFN), which when subcutaneously injected to the patient in the early stages of infection, resulted in their faster recovery. The studies also reported that Viarfin reduces viral load and aid in managing the disease in a better way, such as reduction in the need for supplemental oxygen, thereby reducing the respiratory tension caused due to low oxygen levels.
Zydus stated that a single dose subcutaneous regimen of the antiviral Virafin will make the treatment more convenient for the patients. When administered early on during COVID, Virafin will help patients recover faster and avoid much of the complications. Virafin will be available on the prescription of medical specialist for use in hospital/institutional setup. In the multicentric trial conducted in 20-25 centers across India, Virafin had shown lesser need for supplemental oxygen, clearly indicating that it was able to control respiratory distress and failure which has been one of the major challenges in treating COVID-19. The drug has also shown efficacy against other viral infections.
Dr. Sharvil Patel, Managing Director of Zydus Cadila (an Indian multinational pharmaceutical company headquartered in Ahmedabad, also known as Cadila Healthcare Limited), said the therapy that reduces viral load substantially when given early and can aid in better disease management comes at a critical time for patients. “We will continue to give them (patients) access to the critical therapies as we together fight against COVID-19,” he added.
Phase III clinical trial studies reported that a larger proportion of patients when administered subcutaneously with Virafin turned out to be RT-PCR negative by day 7, apart from faster recovery as compared to other anti-viral agents.
For the development of Virafin, Zydus was supported by Union Ministry of Science and Technology’s Department of Biotechnology (DBT) -Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC) COVID 19 Research Consoritum through National Biopharma Mission, for conducting the Phase II human clinical trial studies.
-global bihari bureau
