Halifax drugmaker Appili Therapeutics has raised US$1 million from FUJIFILM Toyama Chemical Co. to pay for ongoing clinical trials of the Japanese pharma giant’s favipiravir antiviral medication, which the two companies hope will prove useful in treating COVID-19.
Favipiravir, sold under the names Avigan and Reeqonus, was approved for use in treating influenza pandemics by the Japanese government in 2014. Appili and FUJIFILM are part of a four-member consortium conducting phase three -- late stage -- clinical trials to determine the medication’s efficacy for patients infected with the