Novartis steps up coronavirus fight as part of new collaboration
Several big pharmaceutical companies have joined forces with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to scale up solutions and support health systems in response to the coronavirus pandemic.
This content was published on
2 minutes
Keystone-SDA/jdp
العربية
ar
نوفارتيس تنشط كطرف في تحالف جديد لمكافحة الفيروس المستجد
On Thursday, Basel-based pharmaceutical giant Novartis announced that CEO Vas Narasimhan would be the co-chair of a consortium of life science companies to speed up the development and delivery of vaccines, diagnostics and treatments for Covid-19 as well as other solutions.
“We feel a deep shared responsibility to see if there are specific areas where collaboration across the life sciences industry and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation can accelerate solutions to this pandemic,” said Narasimhan in a statementExternal link.
More
More
Coronavirus: the situation in Switzerland
This content was published on
An overview of the latest Covid-related information in the Alpine nation.
The consortium is intended to help ramp up solutions and tap the industry’s scientific knowledge and experience in delivering products at a scale of billions per day.
As a first step, the 15 companies that are part of the consortium have agreed to share their proprietary libraries of molecular compounds with the Covid-19 Therapeutics Accelerator launched by the Gates Foundation, Wellcome, and Mastercard two weeks ago. The accelerator will screen them for potential use against Covid-19 and if there are successful hits, the compounds would move rapidly into in vivo trials in as little as two months.
Other companies that have teamed up in the consortium include GSK, Pfizer and Gilead. Gilead’s drug Remdesivir is an intravenous, antiviral medicine that is being studied in clinical trials as a treatment to Covid-19.
Last week, Novartis announced it was donating up to 130 million doses of generic hydroxychloroquine, which along with a related drug, chloroquine, is currently under evaluation in clinical trials for the treatment of Covid-19.
The company has also created a Covid-19 Response FundExternal link providing $20 million (CHF 19 million) in grants to support public health initiatives for communities affected by the pandemic.
Novartis is one of several big pharmaceutical companies that has moved out of the emerging infectious disease business. In 2014, the Swiss company sold its vaccine business to British pharma company GSK after operating at a loss for years. The company no longer has critical mass of expertise in virology, and no laboratories are working on antivirals or diagnostics.
External Content
Your subscription could not be saved. Please try again.
Almost finished… We need to confirm your email address. To complete the subscription process, please click the link in the email we just sent you.
More
More
With no prospects for profits, big pharma neglects new infectious diseases
This content was published on
More companies are shifting resources away from emerging infectious diseases into more lucrative areas like cancer. What does this mean for Covid-19?
Have you heard something about Swiss diplomacy that you’d like us to fact check?
Not all information circulating about Switzerland’s foreign relations is accurate or well understood. Tell us what you'd like us to fact check or clarify.
Swiss insurer Helvetia says 500 jobs affected by cost-cutting
This content was published on
Some 500 jobs, including 200 to 250 in Switzerland, are affected by the new operational efficiency measures recently announced by insurer Helvetia.
This content was published on
Significantly fewer new cars were sold in Switzerland in 2024 than the previous year as demand for electric cars and plug-in hybrids declined.
Three Swiss brands among world’s 100 most valuable firms
This content was published on
Three Swiss firms made it into the 2024 top 100 most valuable companies in the world, despite Roche, Nestlé and Novartis falling down the rankings.
This content was published on
Swiss singer Bernie Constantin, who made a name for himself with the 1980s songs 'Switzerland Reggae' and 'Lola Berlingo' has died aged 77.
Jungfrau Railways takes over a million guests to the Jungfraujoch
This content was published on
In 2024, the Jungfrau Railway Group transported more than a million passengers to the Jungfraujoch for the second year in a row.
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
Read more
More
Swiss pharma giants swallow up start-ups in push for next big gene therapy
This content was published on
Swiss drug makers are increasingly relying on buying science rather than doing it themselves in the search for the next big medical breakthrough.
Swiss restrict exports of protective equipment as coronavirus hits
This content was published on
Switzerland has introduced temporary restrictions on the export of protective equipment to head off shortages among medical staff and others.
This content was published on
US authorities have approved a $2.1 million gene therapy, making it the most expensive drug ever. Can such a price tag be justified?
This content was published on
As money is poured into the search for a silver bullet to Covid-19, some experts warn that the pandemic could also worsen the antibiotics crisis.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.