PM Chairs a Meeting
of the Task Force on Corona Vaccine Development, Drug Discovery, Diagnosis and
Testing
[PIB
Press Release dated 05 May 2020]
The
PM took a detailed review of the current status of India’s efforts in vaccine
development, drug discovery, diagnosis and testing. Indian vaccine companies
are well known for their quality, manufacturing capacity and global presence.
Today in addition, they have come across as innovators in early stage vaccine
development research. Similarly, Indian academia and start-ups have also
pioneered in this area. Over 30 Indian vaccines are in different stages of
corona vaccine development, with a few going on to the trial stages.
Similarly,
in drug development three approaches are being taken. First, the repurposing of
existing drugs. At least four drugs are undergoing synthesis and examination in
this category. Secondly, the development of new candidate drugs and molecules
are being driven by linking high performance computational approached with
laboratory verification. Thirdly, plant extracts and products are being
examined for general anti-viral properties.
In
diagnosis and testing, several academic research institutions and start-ups
have developed new tests, both for the RT-PCR approach and for the antibody
detection. In addition, by linking laboratories all over the country, capacity
for both these kinds of tests have been enormously scaled up. The problem of
importing reagents for testing has been addressed by consortia of Indian
start-ups and industry, meeting current requirements. The current thrust also
holds promise for the development of a robust long-term industry in this area.
The
review by the PM took note of the extraordinary coming together of academia,
industry and government, combined with speedy but efficient regulatory process.
The PM desired that such coordination and speed should be embedded into a
standard operating procedure. He emphasized that what is possible in a crisis
should be a part of our routine way of scientific functioning.
Appreciating
the scientific coming together of computer science, chemistry and biotechnology
in drug discovery, the PM suggested that a hackathon be held on this subject,
linking computer science to synthesis and testing in the laboratory. The
successful candidates from the hackathon could be taken up by the start-ups for
further development and scaling up.
The
PM added that the innovative and original manner in which Indian scientists,
from basic to applied sciences, have come together with industry is heartening.
This kind of pride, originality and sense of purpose should dominate our
approach going ahead. It is only then that we can be amongst the best in the
world and not followers, in science.