Sun Pharma gains 5% on DGCI nod to initiate clinical trial of drug on COVID-19 patients

Nafamostat is approved in Japan for improvement of acute symptoms of pancreatitis and treatment of Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation (DIC).

Shares of Sun Pharmaceutical Industries rose 5 percent intraday on May 29 after receiving approval from the Indian drug regulator for clinical trial of its drug on COVID-19 patients.

Considering the pandemic situation and urgent need for newer treatment options, the pharma major said it has planned to initiate the clinical trials at the earliest.

The company has initiated manufacturing of both, the API and the finished product of Nafamostat in India, using technology from its subsidiary, Pola Pharma Japan.

Sun Pharma said it has received approval from the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) to initiate a clinical trial with Nafamostat Mesilate in COVID-19 patients.

Nafamostat is approved in Japan for improvement of acute symptoms of pancreatitis and treatment of Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation (DIC).

A group of scientists from the University of Tokyo, Japan and Leibniz Institute for Primate Research, Germany have recently demonstrated that Nafamostat, at very low concentrations, suppresses a protein (TMPRSS2) that the COVID-19 virus uses to enter human lung cells, company said.

Globally, there are three clinical trials currently underway to test Nafamostat in Covid-19 patients. These trials are being led by the University of Tokyo Hospital, Japan; Gyeongsang National University Hospital (South Korea); and a collaborative trial by University Hospital, Padova, Italy, University of Zurich, Switzerland and Yokohoma City University, Japan (RACONA study).

"Nafamostat has shown promising dataagainst SARS-CoV-2 virus in in vitro studies conducted by three independent groups of scientists in Europe, Japan and South Korea. We believe it holds promise in the treatment of COVID-19 patients," Dilip Shanghvi, Managing Director said.

The stock was trading at Rs 479.30, up 4.37 percent on the BSE at 15:16 hours IST.

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