Misleading claim on China developing drug to combat Nipah virus infection: What we found

Many people heaved a sigh of relief upon reading a recent social media post claiming that China has developed a medicine to treat the deadly and highly contagious Nipah virus infection. The post further reported that the oral drug VV116 was successfully tested during the recent Nipah virus outbreak in Bengal. But, is there any truth to it? The answer is an emphatic no. Here's what we found:

What’s wrong?
The post claims that the drug was developed by the scientists of the Wuhan Institute of Virology. ‘…According to the report, Chinese scientists have identified an oral drug that could help contain the spread of the Nipah virus in India. As many as five cases of Nipah were confirmed in the recent Nipah virus outbreak in West Bengal.

As part of the research, VV116, an oral antiviral drug, was administered to affected individuals in an experimental setting. The drug, which was developed to combat Covid-19, was found effective when given to Nipah-affected hamsters…’ says the post.

VV116 in pharma circles
A detailed study was conducted to assess the veracity of the claim. There are no official reports confirming that China has developed a recognised drug to treat Nipah infection. However, the oral antiviral drug VV116, which was developed to combat COVID-19 and is mentioned in the viral post, is known in the pharmaceutical community. Moreover, a recent report states that the oral drug was effective when tested in laboratory animals infected with the Nipah virus. The survival rate of golden hamsters that received the oral drug increased to 66.7 per cent, and viral presence in organs such as the lungs, spleen, and brain decreased markedly. But there are no reports about the drug being tested on humans in West Bengal or anywhere else.

China had given the green signal to administer the VV116 drug to humans for the treatment of Covid-19. But the process of evaluating the drug’s potency against the Nipah virus is still in the pre-clinical stage. The researchers claim that the VV116 drug could also be used to treat Nipah virus infection if the ongoing trials are successful. This proves that the lofty claims that a drug to combat the Nipah virus has been developed and that clinical trials are underway are false and misleading.

What’s the reality?
The claims that China has developed a drug to combat the Nipah virus and that the drug has been tested on humans are misleading. There are no reports that the VV116 drug has been given to humans to treat Nipah virus infection. Testing is ongoing to assess the drug’s effectiveness and safety.