By: PramodKumar
A pharmaceutical company in Pakistan plans to import the antiviral drug remdesivir, which has shown promise in treating the Covid-19 patients, from neighbouring Bangladesh, it said in a stock exchange filing.
The announcement by Searle Company Limited came a day after 56 virus deaths recorded by the south Asian nation, its highest toll in a single day.
The firm said it had entered into an exclusive licensing and marketing agreement with Bangladesh’s Beximco Pharmaceuticals, the first company in the world to introduce the generic variant of the drug.
“Searle Pharma is planning to import remdesivir in finished form (ready to use) to meet the country’s urgent requirements,” the company told the Pakistan Stock Exchange.
Remdesivir, a drug developed by Gilead Sciences, has grabbed attention as one of the most promising treatments for COVID-19, the respiratory disease caused by the virus, which has killed more than 350,000 people globally.
This month, Ferozson’s Pharma said it would make the drug in Pakistan after signing a non-exclusive licensing pact with Gilead to make and sell the drug to 127 nations, but it warned that production could take “weeks”.
