A graphic representation of the black fungus affecting COVID-19 patients (Image: News18 Creative)

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Cadila Healthcare (Zydus Cadila), on May 26 announced the signing of a licence for supply and commercialisation agreement with Taiwan-based drug maker TLC to commercialise the latter's Amphotericin B Liposome Injection 50mg (AmphoTLC) in India.

Under the terms of the agreement, TLC will manufacture and supply AmphoTLC on a non-exclusive basis to Zydus, and Zydus will commercialise the antifungal drug in India.

Amphotericin B Liposome Injection is a critical drug to treat Mucormycosis or Black Fungus in India. The drug is facing a severe shortage due to the rise in Black Fungus cases in India. The Central government is importing about 6.8 lakh vials and approved applications of 5 drug makers including TLC to supply the drug. Some of the states like Maharashtra have also announced that they will be importing Amphotericin B Liposome Injection.

Zydus said AmphoTLC is the first and only complex generic drug to have achieved bioequivalence to Gilead’s AmBisome, proving its sameness to the safest form of amphotericin B in the world.

The drug is approved in Taiwan and has been manufactured and sold by Yung Shin Pharmaceutical Industrial Co. (YSP) for several years.

COVID-19 Vaccine

Frequently Asked Questions

How does a vaccine work?

A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine.

How many types of vaccines are there?

There are broadly four types of vaccine — one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine.

What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind?

Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time.

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Zydus Cadila enters pact with Taiwanese drug maker TLC to distribute Amphotericin B injection in India

Under the terms of the agreement, TLC will manufacture and supply AmphoTLC on a non-exclusive basis to Zydus, and Zydus will commercialize the antifungal drug in India.

A graphic representation of the black fungus affecting COVID-19 patients (Image: News18 Creative)

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