There is good news in the fight against the Wuhan virus as a new study has claimed that the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) developed the 2-DG drug is effective against all variants of Covid-19 and even reduces the multiplicity of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, reports The Hindustan Times.
The preliminary study also showed that DRDO’s anti-Covid drug alleviates cells from infection-induced cytopathic effect (CPE) and cell death, according to its abstract reviewed by news agency ANI.
DRDO’s Covid-19 drug, 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2-DG), was released at a crucial time by Union ministers Rajnath Singh and Dr Harsh Vardhan on May 17, wherein the central government claimed that the drug has the potential to reduce a patient’s average recovery time by two and a half days and oxygen demand by up to 40%.
That is why authorisation was given for emergency use by the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) on June 1 as an adjunct therapy for moderate to severe coronavirus patients.
The new study assessing the viability of DRDO’s anti-Covid drug was conducted by Abhishek Kumar, Dhiviya Vedagiri, Annat Narayan Bhatt, Yogesh Rai, and others. It has not been peer-reviewed yet, ANI noted.
DRDO’s anti-Covid drug according to the government will be priced at ₹900 per sachet in the market, and this drug is manufactured by the Hyderabad-based Dr Reddy’s Laboratories (DRL).
However, the central government has said that it will also provide the drug at discounted prices to the central and state governments.
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