Study proposed repurposed drugs to treat covid 19

Study proposed repurposed drugs to treat covid 19

Subject: Science and Technology

Context:

The repurposed drug, an antihelminth originally used to treat tapeworm infection, was found to show promise in an exploratory study undertaken by Bengaluru-based National Centre for Biological Sciences (NCBS-TIFR) and Institute for Stem Cell Science and Regenerative Medicine (InSTEM) along with Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine (CSIR-IIIM), Jammu.

Concept:

What is Drug repurposing (profiling)?

• Drug repurposing (also known as drug repositioning) is a strategy for discovering new uses for approved and investigational drugs that are beyond the scope of the original medical indication.
• This approach offers several advantages over developing a novel drug for a given indication

Advantages of repurposing drugs

Notably, the drug repurposing approach benefits from the fact that approved medicines and several discarded compounds have already been tested in humans and comprehensive information is available on their pharmacology, dose, possible toxicity and formulation. Drug repurposing has numerous advantages over conventional drug discovery approaches, including:

• Considerably cuts research and development (R&D) costs.
• Reduces the drug development timeline, as various existing compounds have already demonstrated safety in humans, it does not require Phase 1 clinical trials.
• Potential for reuse despite evidence of adverse effects and failed efficacy in some indications.

Some of the examples of repurposed drugs are Remdesivir, Hydroxychloroquine, Lopinavir / Ritonavir(not successful)

Due to soaring drug prices and the slow pace of drug discovery and development, repurposing existing drugs to treat diseases other than their originally approved indication is becoming an increasingly attractive proposition. Such drugs will likely soon capture a significant portion of the pharmaceutical industry.