An old ebola drug being tested as a treatment for COVID-19 is capable of tricking the virus responsible for the deadly respiratory disease, a new University of Alberta study suggests. The drug remdesivir is capable of halting the coronavirus from replicating, according to new research published Monday in the Journal of Biological Chemistry. And while the study supports the need for clinical study, results obtained in the lab cannot predict how the drug will work on people, Götte said. American biotechnology company Gilead Sciences developed the drug remdesivir as a response to the Ebola epidemic in West Africa, where it was tested in a clinical trial. A previous study by Götte and his team, published in February, demonstrated that the drug was effective against MERS, a related coronavirus.

Source: CBC News April 13, 2020 20:59 UTC