Pfizer to Manufacture Gilead's Remdesivir for Covid-19 Treatment -- Update
07 Agosto 2020 - 02:47PM
Dow Jones News
By Matt Grossman
Gilead Sciences Inc. is expanding its manufacturing network to
ramp up production of Covid-19 treatment remdesivir, and says it
will be able to meet global demand in real time starting in
October.
The company has struck a multiyear deal to have Pfizer Inc.
manufacture the antiviral medication developed by Gilead.
The drug, which has been in short supply, has been approved for
limited use as a treatment for Covid-19. Pfizer plans to produce
remdesivir at its Kansas facility.
The drug, first developed as a potential treatment for hepatitis
C, interferes with the virus's ability to replicate in a patient's
cells. Federal and state agencies have decided how to apportion the
treatment among hospitals as demand exceeded its availability
during the pandemic.
Gilead's manufacturing network for remdesivir now includes more
than 40 companies in North America, Europe and Asia, the company
said Thursday. Supply has grown more than 50-fold since January,
when the new coronavirus first led to an outbreak of Covid-19 in
China.
Gilead plans to produce two million additional remdesivir
treatment courses by the end of the year, the company said.
Meanwhile, Novavax Inc., which is developing a vaccine for the
new coronavirus, also reached deals this week to ramp up
production. Novavax will license the vaccine technology to Takeda
Pharmaceutical Co., which anticipates the capacity to make more
than 250 million doses of the vaccine a year with funding from the
Japanese government, the companies said. Takeda will be responsible
for regulatory approvals in Japan and Novavax will receive payments
based on milestones and a portion of proceeds from the vaccine, the
companies said.
Novavax has also licensed its vaccine candidate to Serum
Institute of India Pvt. Ltd., giving the company the rights to
produce the Novavax vaccine for India and for low- and
middle-income countries. That deal could support the production of
1 billion doses of the vaccine, Novavax said.
A Phase 1 trial of Novavax's vaccine showed its potential to
create a robust immune response, the company said Tuesday.
Write to Matt Grossman at matt.grossman@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
August 07, 2020 13:32 ET (17:32 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
Pfizer (NYSE:PFE)
Gráfico Histórico do Ativo
De Fev 2024 até Mar 2024
Pfizer (NYSE:PFE)
Gráfico Histórico do Ativo
De Mar 2023 até Mar 2024