China Starts Testing an Antiviral Drug in Coronavirus Patients in Collaboration with the USA: Officials

Epoch Times ^ | 02/07/2020 | Jack Phillips

[SeekAndFind]

U.S. officials and Chinese authorities said that antiviral drug remdesivir, used as a treatment for Ebola, is being tested on new coronavirus patients in China.

Gilead Sciences announced it would collaborate with U.S., Chinese, and other health officials to investigate whether the drug works.

Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, the head of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said in a news conference that remdesivir tests have “now begun in a randomized controlled trial in two separate trials in China by one of our colleagues,” Dr. Anthony Fauci, said.

They’re looking at the “effectiveness of the drug” in a “randomized control trial,” Fauci said. “Pretty soon, we are going to get a definitive answer.”

Gilead noted that remdesivir hasn’t been licensed anywhere in the world to treat any viruses, noting that officials aren’t sure whether it’s safe or effective.

“Gilead has provided remdesivir for use in a small number of patients with [coronavirus] for emergency treatment in the absence of any approved treatment options. Gilead is working with health authorities in China to establish a randomized, controlled trial to determine whether remdesivir can safely and effectively be used to treat [coronavirus],” the firm said in a statement.

The firm, based in California’s Foster City, said the drug has shown to have activity against MERS and SARS, which are similar coronaviruses.

Ryan McKeel, a Gilead spokesman, told the New York Times in an email that two clinical trials will take place in Wuhan, China, where the outbreak has been centered. Five-hundred patients will get the drug and comparison patients will get a placebo.

“It is important to keep in mind that this is an experimental medicine that has only been used in a small number of patients with 2019-nCoV to date,

[PIF]

This may be a compromise in the patent battle between China and Gilead

[datura]

Convenient

[faithhopecharity]

Well at least they’re trying. And a SARS medicine could be beneficial since there are reported SARS genetic segments in this new virus.

[Zhang Fei]

You gotta love the chutzpah of the Communist Party in trying to steal Gilead’s intellectual property. Then again, it’s not as if this kind of thievery is anything new for China’s rulers.

[A_Former_Democrat]

Gee, I thought the Reds didn’t want our capitalist help

[existentially_kuffer]

Capitalism vs Communism

[PittsburghAfterDark]

Just out of curiosity, I hope I’m not alone in thinking this, what are the odds of a Chinese Mengele doing all kinds of human experimentation in their “vocational” camps for Muslims on this virus?

[ETCM]

You gotta love the chutzpah of the Communist Party in trying to steal Gilead’s intellectual property.

Why let a crisis go to waste when you can use it to steal intellectual property? Gilead is an American company, but this is no time to fight over intellectual property. After the crisis, it should definitely be pushed at the highest levels.

[vetvetdoug]

Gilead stocks should do well in the interim.

[oldasrocks]

Hope non of the patients are muzzies. They would hate being used as a guinea pig.

[txnativegop]

With the record the ChiComs have in the human rights area, I would say very good indeed

[SeekAndFind]

The Reds do want our help when it comes to medicine and drugs.

However, they Rejected our offer to help them discover the source of the coronavirus. This makes me suspicious.
WHY?

[hardspunned]

I’m hoping our doctors are doing research on quarantine procedures with all the forced subjects they have. Not Chinese Mengele experiments, but just taking advantage of the situation.

[Cold Heart]

China did not realize that FR was doing a parallel investigation into the origin of the virus.

[steve86]

Remdesivir seemed to work at Providence in Everett, Wa, in combination with a couple of other antivirals.

[DoughtyOne]

In this instance, it will save lives, but boy we sure love
giving our technical achievements to China.

[sauropod]

.

[null and void]

Bring Out Your Dead

Post to me or FReep mail to be on/off the Bring Out Your Dead ping list.

The purpose of the “Bring Out Your Dead” ping list (formerly the “Ebola” ping list) is very early warning of emerging pandemics, as such it has a high false positive rate.

So far the false positive rate is 100%.

At some point we may well have a high mortality pandemic, and likely as not the “Bring Out Your Dead” threads will miss the beginning entirely.

*sigh* Such is life, and death...

If a quarantine saves just one child's life, it's worth it.

[Jane Long]

Always :-)