NEW DELHI: The Defence Research and Development Organisation’s (DRDO) on Tuesday said that the anti-COVID drug 2DG is approved for emergency use as an adjunct therapy to the standard of care in the treatment of coronavirus patients in hospital settings.
The DRDO said that anti-COVID drug 2DG can now be given to COVID-19 patients under the care and prescription of doctors. DRDO also issued some important guidelines with regard to its anti-COVID-19 drug. “Ideally, 2DG should be prescribed as early as possible by doctors for moderate to severe COVID patients for a maximum duration of up to 10 days,” it said. DRDO further said that uncontrolled diabetes, severe cardiac problem, ARDS, severe hepatic and renal impairment patients have not been studied yet with 2DG, and hence caution should be exercised. The 2DG should not be given to pregnant and lactating women and patients below 18 years. “Patients and attendants are advised to request the hospital to contact Dr Reddy’s lab Hyderabad for medicine supply at email: 2DG@drreddys.com,” it added.
The first batch of DRDO’s anti-COVID-19 drug was released on May 17 by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and health minister Dr Harsh Vardhan, after the Drugs Controller General of India permitted the emergency use authorisation of 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2-DG), anti-viral drug as an adjunct therapy for moderate to severe coronavirus patients. In April last year when the pandemic broke out, scientists of the Institute of Nuclear Medicine and Allied Sciences (INMAS), a lab of DRDO conducted laboratory experiments with the help of the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB), Hyderabad in collaboration with DRL and found that this molecule works effectively against the SARS-CoV-2 virus and inhibits viral growth. The 2-DG drug comes in powder form in the 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 drug reportedly reduces a patient’s average recovery time by two and a half days and oxygen demand by upto 40 per cent, the Union Health Ministry said.
