Finally, a glimmer for drug-resistant TB

Indian scientists and the Department of Science & Technology have claimed to have made a major breakthrough in the cure for tuberculosis. Th...

Indian scientists and the Department of Science & Technology have claimed to have made a major breakthrough in the cure for tuberculosis. The new discovery is a drug, Sudoterb, which, if proved successful, will help tackle the current resistance to TB drugs and reduce treatment duration from the present six-eight months to just two months.

The existing drugs require multiple doses in a day leading people to skip or stop treatment midway.

The molecule is the first of its kind since the last discovery of Rifampicin in 1963. But fingers are crossed. Researchers have completed initial studies and an Investigational New Drug (IND) application has been filed. Once the IND is cleared by the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI), the molecule will undergo Phase I, II and III clinical trials in human subjects. These trials are expected to take about 4 to 5 years.

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According to them, the new molecule, a synthetic one, is less toxic, and in animal studies, has shown that it prevents recurrence of the disease.

‘‘This might reduce the treatment time to two months and reduce the dose to just once a day,’’ said Kapil Sibal, Minister for Science and Technology.

The new molecule is a result of public-private partnership under the new millennium Indian technology leadership intiative project launched by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research. It has been discovered by Lupin Laboratories in partnership with 11 government institutions.

As per the WHO (2000) report, around 3 million deaths due to tuberculosis are reported every year and India accounts for around 0.5 million deaths.

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