Dr Reddy's announces launch of Covid-19 oral drug 2-DG

Dr Reddy’s Laboratories has announced the commercial launch of 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2-DG) on Monday.

2-DG is an anti-Covid-19 drug developed by the Institute of Nuclear Medicine and Allied Sciences (INMAS), a Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) laboratory.

The drug manufactured by Dr Reddy’s has a purity of 99.5 per cent and is sold commercially under the brand name 2-DG. The maximum retail price of each sachet has been fixed at Rs 990, with a subsidized rate offered to government institutions.

Read | Hope to resolve this soon: SII CEO Adar Poonawalla on Indians facing travel issues due to Covishield

The oral drug can be administered only upon prescription and under the supervision of a qualified physician to hospitalised moderate to severe Covid-19 patients as an adjunct therapy to the existing standard of care.

Emergency use approval for the anti Covid-19 therapeutic application of the drug was granted on May 1.

Dr Reddy’s will supply to major government as well as private hospitals across India. In the initial weeks, the company will make the drug available in hospitals across metros and Tier 1 cities, and subsequently expand coverage to the rest of India, the company stated on Monday.

Dr Reddy's is also the India manager of the Russian Covid-19 vaccine – Sputnik V. The pharma major is in an agreement with the Russian Direct Investment Fund to supply 250 million imported doses (to fully vaccinate 125 million people), priced at about Rs 995 per dose (including a 5 % GST).