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“important today”
Anti-corona pill: How a new drug could change the pandemic
The picture shows the anti-corona drug Paxlovid, manufactured by Pfizer
© Uncredited/Pfizer/DPA
Hopes for corona drugs like Paxlovid are high. The virologist Stephan Ludwig has also discovered a new active ingredient against the insidious virus – albeit by accident.
“Vaccination no longer helps a patient who is in the hospital, who then needs medication,” explains virologist Stephan Ludwig in the current podcast episode. Ludwig is researching a drug against the corona virus. A new anti-flu drug was actually supposed to be developed – but it turned out that the active ingredient could also help against Covid-19. Clinical trials are already underway and if all goes well, the drug could get emergency use approval in the fall.
What is special about the new active ingredient: Instead of fighting the pathogen directly, it attacks a factor in cells that are already infected. In this way, the active substance prevents the virus from multiplying and becoming resistant. “That would mean that we then have an active ingredient that can be effective for a very long time – even in five or ten years – because the virus, even if it changes, cannot escape the attack by the drug.” , according to the virologist.
© TVNOW / Andreas Friese
Podcast “important today”
Sure, opinionated, on the 12: “today important” is not just a news podcast. We set topics and initiate debates – with attitude and sometimes uncomfortable. Host Michel Abdollahi and his team speak out for this star– and RTL reporters with the most exciting people from politics, society and entertainment. They let all voices have their say, both the quiet and the loud. Anyone who hears “important today” starts the day well informed and can have a well-founded say.
Medication does not replace vaccination
However, vaccination does not replace any of the new corona drugs. “We always have to rely on these two pillars when fighting pathogens – vaccination as a prophylactic and medication as a therapy,” explains Ludwig. However, as a therapeutic option, the active ingredient could prevent severe or even fatal disease progression.
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