US-based Gilead Sciences and India’s Jubilant Life Sciences signed a licensing agreement for production of remdesivir drug which has been identified as a potential therapy for novel coronavirus. The licensing agreement is for India and 127 other low, middle income and upper middle income countries and the Noida-based company will market the drug.
Jubilant Life Sciences chairman Shyam Bhartia and managing director Hari S Bhartia said that, “We will be monitoring the clinical trials and regulatory approvals very closely and would be ready to launch the drug shortly after the required regulatory approvals. We also plan to produce the drug’s active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) in-house helping its cost effectiveness and consistent availability.”
Remdesivir is the most watched drugs against the treatment of Covid-19. It received an emergency approval in April from the US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA), making it the first authorised therapy for the virus. The USFDA’s approval was according to the trial results which showed that the drug reduced the recovery time to five days from 10 days for moderate patients.
