The Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) has approved the emergency use of DRDO’s anti-COVID-19 therapeutic oral drug 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2-DG) as adjunct therapy in moderate to severe COVID-19 patients.
On May 1, the DCGI granted permission for ‘Emergency Use’ of this drug.
Being a generic molecule and analogue of glucose, it can be easily produced and made available in plenty in the country.
After taking this drug, it was found that the patients have less dependence on oxygen while recovering from Coronavirus infection.
The drug comes in powder form in sachet, which is taken orally by dissolving it in water. It accumulates in the virus infected cells and prevents virus growth by stopping viral synthesis and energy production. Its selective accumulation in virally infected cells makes this drug unique, the DRDO said in a statement today.
In the ongoing second COVID-19 wave, a large number of patients are facing severe oxygen dependency and need hospitalisation. The drug is expected to save precious lives due to the mechanism of operation of the drug in infected cells. This also reduces the hospital stay of COVID-19 patients.
This drug has been developed by Institute of Nuclear Medicine and Allied Sciences (INMAS), a lab of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), in collaboration with Dr Reddy’s Laboratories (DRL), Hyderabad.
