Maharashtra plans clinical trials of TB vaccine BCG to treat Covid-19

By Sumit Blogs -

maharashtra-plans-clinical-trials-of-tb-vaccine-bcg-to-treat-covid-19

By Economic Times – Maharashtra plans clinical trials of TB vaccine BCG to treat Covid-19 The 121-year-old institute’s trial is intended for patients who are moderately ill with Covid-19 and is likely to be carried out in small batches. Last Updated: Apr 30, 2020, 11.00 AM ISTAgenciesIt will be conducted at state-run medical colleges and has already been approved by the state and the institutional ethics committees.(This story originally appeared in on Apr 30, 2020)MUMBAI: Scientists from the Haffkine Research Institute, along with the state’s medical education department (MED), are set to conduct a multi-centre clinical trial to test the use of tuberculosis vaccine BCG (Bacillus Calmette-Guerin) to treat Covid-19.

While multiple trials the world over, including one by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), are looking at the vaccine’s efficacy to prevent the coronavirus disease, this trial will evaluate whether it can treat the infection. The 121-year-old institute’s trial is intended for patients who are moderately ill with Covid-19 and is likely to be carried out in small batches.

It will be conducted at state-run medical colleges and has already been approved by the state and the institutional ethics committees. Confirming this, MED secretary Dr Sanjay Mukherjee said, “We are awaiting the Drug Control General of India’s (DCGI) nod to begin work. There is a lot of speculation around BCG and whether it has any impact on Covid-19. We will assess if one shot of BCG can mitigate the disease.”

He said the state is aware that the idea of using BCG as a therapy could raise a few eyebrows, but there is reason to believe it could work. BCG is widely given to infants and neonates to prevent tuberculous meningitis. Sources have told TOI that “encouraging results” in a preliminary evaluation of the BCG concept has prompted the agencies to conduct a full trial. “It has been used in a handful of mild, moderate and severe cases with encouraging results,” said an official.

Dr Mukherjee confirmed that the initial experience on a handful of patients has been encouraging, but only a full trial would say whether patients will benefit from it. Some city doctors, however, expressed scepticism and said that an immune-modulator like the BCG vaccine takes at least two to four weeks to stimulate immunity.

“If it’s a therapeutic trial, how will they measure whether it worked or not as the disease’s natural course is two weeks? In most cases, either patients are going home by two weeks or succumbing to the infection. The bottomline is if the patient is too ill, how will they monitor?” said a senior infection consultant, adding that an Australian and a Dutch study are investigating the effect of BCG vaccination in healthcare workers to see if it offers any natural immunity against Covid-19.
Commenting feature is disabled in your country/region.Copyright © 2020 Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All rights reserved. For reprint rights: Times Syndication Service

For more details, please visit https://ift.tt/2ybVGc9

The post Maharashtra plans clinical trials of TB vaccine BCG to treat Covid-19 appeared first on Stay in Gurgaon.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Flat sale of flu drugs hints at no unusual rise in infections

By Sumit Blogs -
Image
By Economic Times – Flat sale of flu drugs hints at no unusual rise in infections Industry executives and chemists said the April sales data showed a month-on-month decline of 30-40%. But even though the lockdown is seen to be impacting sales of most drugs, the pattern for medicines for infections and flus is no different.Last Updated: Apr 30, 2020, 11.23 AM ISTAgenciesExperts said the decline in sales was primarily because of the lockdown and other restrictions which forced people to stay indoors. (This story originally appeared in on Apr 30, 2020)NEW DELHI: Sales of anti-infectives (antibiotics and antivirals), respiratory drugs, painkillers and analgesics — some key medicines used for influenza-like illnesses — have remained mostly unchanged in last three months (January to March), partly explained by the lockdown but also indicating no unusual rise in flu-type infections that might point to a wider and undetected spread of Covid-19. Sales of most medicines, including this set of
Read more

10YearsForSimha: Reasons behind film’s success

By Sumit Blogs -
Image
By Times of India – 10YearsForSimha: Reasons behind film’s success TIMESOFINDIA.COM | Last updated on – Apr 30, 2020, 06:00 ISTclose01/6Take a look at the reasons behind the film’s successDirected by Boyapati Srinu, the 2010 film Simha was a game-changer among Tollywood films that was lauded, not only for Nandamuri Balakrishna’s intense performance in the dual role but also the gripping narration of the filmmaker. Balayya and Nayanthara were seen on the big screen for the first time ever in the film. The action drama made a special place in the hearts of the audience because of its simple storytelling, superhit songs and unbeatable chemistry between the lead pair. The movie has completed a decade, but the essence is as fresh as it was back then. As the film clocks 10 years of its release, find out the reasons behind the massive success of the Balakrishna starrer.readmore02/6​Boyapati Srinu’s gripping narrationBefore Simha, Boyapati Srinu had delivered Bhadra (2005) and Tulasi (2007),
Read more

Hrithik-Saif’s Vikram Vedha hits a roadblock

By Sumit Blogs -
Image
The stage was about to be set for Hrithik Roshan and Saif Ali Khan’s ‘Vikram Vedha’ in Mumbai’s Film City. The material had reached. The artisans had been hired. But the lights have now been dimmed. Madhavan and Vijay Sethupathi’s hit movie Vikram Vedha’s Hindi remake will not go on floors by mid-July as per the original plan. The new delta virus of COVID has sent shudders down many spines and many films which were being laid out on an expansive scale have been either held back or shifted their shoots abroad. The first schedule of this Hrithik-Saif movie will now be shot abroad. A source says, “The Mumbai schedule will be done but later.” Adds the source, “It’s a call that was taken yesterday. It wasn’t an easy call to take, no doubt, but the fact that it’s going to be a costly set made the makers take the safer route rather than be sorry later.” When contacted, General Secretary of FWICE (Federation of Western India Cine Employees), Ashok Dubey, confirmed that the makers of ‘V
Read more