Articles of Science

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The Cuban pharmaceutical industry vs COVID-19

vacunas-rusia-covid-19- 300

The Cuban pharmaceutical industry has been key to the national strategy to confront the SARS-COV-2 pandemic, guaranteeing medications to implement treatment protocols established by the Ministry of Public Health (Minsap), including several products used successfully with high-risk segments of the population, reducing the number of patients reaching serious and critical conditions, as well as mortality rates for this group.

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BioFarma Innovations, a new joint enterprise created by BioCubaFarma and SG Innovations Limited

Cuba biofarma

The new partnership aims to provide broader access to BioCubaFarma’s patent-protected portfolio of biopharmaceutical products, developed by the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry in Cuba. Cuba’s BioCubaFarma Enterprise Group and the British company SG Innovations Limited has announced the creation of a new company, BioFarma Innovations focused on accelerating the development of new medications and their distribution in Europe and the British Commonwealth.

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Cuban drug approved to treat COVID-19 in India

Cuba farmacos

India’s Drug Regulatory Authority has approved exceptional use of the Cuban drug Itolizumab to treat severe patients with COVID-19, reported Eduardo Ojito Magaz, director of Cuba’s Molecular Immunology Center (CIM), on Twitter. Winner of a National Prize from the Cuban Academy of Sciences in 2014, this humanized monoclonal antibody has been part of the medical care protocol for COVID-19 in Cuba since April.

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First 500 Cuban-made ventilators coming soon

Investigaciones covid

By October, the national health system should have on hand the first 500 ventilators built In Cuba, reported Dr. Mitchell Valdés Sosa, director of the Cuban Neuroscience Center (CNEURO), affiliated with the BioCubaFarma enterprise group. This figure includes 250 machines described as invasive, that is, the patient must be physically connected via intubation. These are used primarily in intensive care units to aid patients in serious and critical condition.

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Interferon in Cuba, a prophecy come true

heberon

When Comandante en Jefe Fidel Castro inaugurated the Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (CIGB) on July 1, 1986, he said he expected more from combinations of alpha and gamma interferons than from the individual use of the products, first produced in Cuba 39 years ago, on May 28, 1981. That prediction became a reality on August 4, 2016, when Heberferon, a new formulation of IFNS alpha and gamma interferons for the treatment of basal cell carcinoma.

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Fidel versus COVID-19 and beyond

Fidel covid

The fact that Cuba’s response to the COVID-19 has been far more effective than most countries in the region, including the United States and also several European nations, is a reality that is becoming evident. A health system based on prevention, with a presence in all communities of medical offices, organized by neighborhood and linked to polyclinics, as well as general and specialized hospitals.

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Itolizumab monoclonal antibody in the COVID-19 battle

interferon cuba

In 2014 the novel medication won a National Award from the Cuban Academy of Sciences (ACC) in the Biomedical Sciences arena, and since April, this year, the humanized monoclonal antibody, Itolizumab, has been included in the country’s COVID-19 treatment protocol. To learn first-hand about the characteristics and indications of this drug, created at the Center for Molecular Immunology (CIM), and winner of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Gold Medal in 2015.

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Another COVID-19 medication under development in Cuba

Med sol laboratorios

MedSol Laboratories is working to develop the antiretroviral medication Kaletra, a drug that has shown its effectiveness worldwide in combating COVID-19. According to Adalberto Izquierdo Castro, head of Research and Development at MedSol’s production unit (UEB) Novatec, the drug is in the development stage, with three pilot batches produced and physical-chemical analyses conducted. Izquierdo told ACN that the next step would be to compare the Cuban product with the lead product.

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There should be no barriers to scientific cooperation between Cuba and the United States

Congreso Cardiologisy

The blockade of Cuba is anachronistic and must cease, said Dr. Matthew W. Martinez, a renowned U.S. cardiologist participating in the International Cardiology Congress, Cardiovilla 2019, which took place in Cayo Santa María, who added that no there should be no barriers to collaboration between Cuban scientists and those of the United States.

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Invasive plant species in Cuba take their toll

Cuba bosques

A total of 323 plants had been identified as invasive alien species in Cuba, which have the potential to impact biological diversity and affect agricultural production. Boasting an estimated 7,000 to 7,500 plant species, of which some 53% are exclusive to the archipelago, Cuba is one of the islands with the greatest diversity of plants and endemism in the Caribbean and the world.