Amidst the pandemic, pharma giant Pfizer has already made a mark by making the much awaited vaccine for coronavirus. The vaccine is not just effective but is proving to be a success across the globe. After the vaccine, the company is now all set to launch an experimental drug for coronavirus. The oral drug is expected to treat the virus when the first signs of the illness is noticed. The drug is expected to be available by the end of 2021. The announcement was made by Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla while talking to a leading daily on April 27, 2021.
Pfizer along with the German company BioNTech had developed the first authorized COVID-19 vaccine in the United States. The vaccine was launched in the month of March after going through intense clinical trials. The upcoming drug will be a part of the medicines known as the protease inhibitors. This works by inhibiting an enzyme that the virus needs to be replicated in human cells. These inhibitors are already used to treat some of the other viral pathogens like the Hepatitis C and HIV.
At present the drug is undergoing clinical trials and if everything goes as planned, then it will be approved by the Food and Drug administration and will be distributed across the United States by the end of 2021. According to the health experts, the upcoming drug seems promising as it will be useful for people who have just started to show the symptoms and could also use it while being out of the hospital. The researchers have hoped that the drug will also help to prevent the disease from progressing any further and prevent the trips to hospitals.
Apart from the drug, the company is also testing the COVID-19 vaccine for children from 6 months old to 11 years old. In order to being an end to the pandemic, it is important to vaccinate the children as well.
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