Pharma Mar says test of potential coronavirus drug promising

Reuters

Published Mar 13, 2020 08:36

Pharma Mar says test of potential coronavirus drug promising

MADRID (Reuters) - Spanish pharmaceutical company Pharma Mar (MC:PHMR) said on Friday tests carried out in test tubes with its cancer drug Aplidin on samples of a virus similar to the COVID-19 coronavirus were encouraging.

Investigators from Spain's biotech centre Centro Nacional de Biotecnologia del Centro Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas showed Aplidin has a positive effect on multiplication and propagation of the virus, Pharma Mar said in a statement on Friday.

The company will contact regulatory authorities to analyse the possibility of testing the drug on patients with the COVID-19 coronavirus.