JOIN USKarnataka expresses interest in DRDO's 'game changing' Covid drug
A new drug developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) promises to cut down on oxygen dependency among Covid-19 patients. Representatives of the state government have now shown interest.
Health Minister Dr K Sudhakar was briefed by scientists on projects to tackle the ongoing second wave during his visit to the DRDO campus. Among the innovations was the organisation’s 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2-DG) drug which Dr Sushakar's office described as a "game changer."
In Karnataka’s ongoing second wave of novel coronavirus infections, a significant percentage of symptomatic cases require oxygen support, which has strained the state's oxygen manufacturing capacity. However, the 2-DG drug, which is based on a glucose molecule and which has completed Phase III trials, has been shown to reduce oxygen dependency in 42 per cent of 220 studied patients by the third day of hospitalisation.
Based on these results, the Drugs Controller General of India's (DCGI) Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) permitted Phase-II clinical trials of 2-DG in Covid-19 patients in May 2020. Phase IIA was conducted in six hospitals and Phase IIB (dose ranging) clinical trial was conducted at 11 hospitals all over the country. Phase-II trial was conducted on 110 patients.
The Phase-III clinical trials were conducted between December 2020 and March 2021, at 27 Covid hospitals in Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. During the trials, a significantly higher proportion of patients were said to have improved symptomatically and became free from supplemental oxygen dependence (42 per cent) by Day-3, compared to 31 per cent efficacy found during Standard of Care (SoC).
The drug works by inhibiting glycolysis, a method used by cells to break down glucose for energy. This is a method used previously to starve out and eradicate cancer cells. DRDO scientists believe they can use the method to inhibit virus cells as they too are dependent on glycolysis for replication.
However, no clinical paper has been published so far.
"The drug will be of immense benefit to the people suffering from Covid-19," Dr Sudhakar said.
The drug is currently being developed by the Institute of Nuclear Medicine and Allied Sciences (INMAS), in collaboration with Dr Reddy's Laboratories (DRL), Hyderabad.