TEHRAN (FNA)- The Iranian scientists managed to make the Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient (API) of Favipiravir which has been helpful in curing coronavirus-infected patients.
“The synthesis of Favipiravir API and catalysts was successfully performed at Khajeh Nasir al-Din Tusi University of Technology,” a professor of chemistry at Khajeh Nasir University said on Saturday.
He added that studies in Japan and China have shown that Favipiravir can effectively treat coronavirus disease.
Moreover, a knowledge-based company in Isfahan, Central Iran, has produced super activated carbon to be used as filter in the masks which prevent coronavirus epidemic.
“Our product is actually super activated carbon which is considered as superabsorbents. The activated carbon can be used in respiratory masks,” CEO of the company Roya Khosravi said on Saturday.
She added that the activated carbon can be placed inside the outside layer of masks to filter the virus and block its way into the mouth and respiratory system.
Khosravi said that her company has produced the laboratorial sample of the activated carbon and is now in the prototyping stage.
Also, Iran on Saturday unveiled 6 new home-made products used to diagnose and fight against coronavirus and screen people suspected of infection to COVID-19 virus.
“Many products have been built in Iran to fight against coronavirus. At present, different types of diagnosis kits and other equipment are produced inside the country and they have been effective in decreasing infection to the disease beside efforts by the medical staff and the health ministry,” Iranian Vice-President for Science and Technology Sorena Sattari said, addressing a ceremony to unveil the products at Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences in Tehran on Saturday.
Upon arrival, Sattari passed through a newly-developed Iran-made gate which controls the body temperature, the percentage of blood oxygen saturation and disinfects the body of individuals, which can be used at the entrances of offices and other places.
Also, an ozone generator system which can measure the ozone in the air, disinfect the environment and produce onsite ozone without using chemical materials, as well as a nano shield special to the medical staff were unveiled.
Meantime, 3 types of coronavirus molecular detection kits, a kit to diagnose COVID-19 virus rapidly, a system to manage COVID-19 disease and an application named TAK special to the preventive measures and treatment of coronavirus were among other home-made products which were unveiled in the ceremony.
Besides, a knowledge-based company in the Northern Mazandaran province manufactured ventilator for coronavirus-infected patients.
The head of Mazandaran Science and Technology Park said that the device has been produced much cheaper than the foreign samples.
This ventilator is applicable in various places, including home, ambulance, ICU, due to its small size and easy usage.
It is capable of being used for newborns, children and grownups.
Meanwhile, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Saturday ordered the Health Ministry to set conditions for middle-risk jobs to resume, as the coronavirus has been relatively curbed.
“The government organizations have reported pretty satisfying cooperation of people, during the weeklong running of smart social distancing plan,” Rouhani said in a meeting with several committees of the National Coronavirus Campaign Headquarters on Saturday, adding that this has reduced coronavirus contagion in some provinces and has stabilized it in others.
The president asked the Iranians to continue observing hygiene protocols and ordered the Health Ministry and affiliated bodies to determine conditions for middle-risk activities to resume.
Meantime, Iranian Sports Medicine Federation is going to start a screening program to detect COVID-19 in those athletes who will participate in the upcoming Olympic Games.
“The project will begin from this week and according to the schedule, 52 ahtletes who have already won Olympics quota will be screened,” the Federation’s Spokesman Reza Saeedi said.
Furthermore, Head of Mostazafan Foundation Parviz Fattah informed of allocation of 300 billion tomans (over $70mln) by the foundation to be given as loan to the vulnerable strata.
Fattah added that the loan will be interest-free and will be offered to the vulnerable families like peddlers, working children and so on.
Iranian Health Ministry Spokesman Kianoush Jahanpour said on Saturday that 1,374 new cases of coronavirus infection have been identified in the country in the past 24 hours, voicing pleasure that nearly 70% of patients have recovered.
“1,374 more patients infected with COVID-19 virus have been identified in the country since yesterday based on confirmed diagnosis criteria,” Jahanpour said on Saturday.
He said that the total number of coronavirus patients in Iran has increased to 80,868, adding that 5,031 people have lost their lives due to infection to the virus, including 73 in the past 24 hours.
Jahanpour, meantime, said that 55,987 (nearly 70% of) infected people have been treated and dismissed from hospitals, expressing concern that 3,513 patients infected with COVID-19 virus are in critical conditions.
He also noted that 330,137 coronavirus diagnosis tests have been carried out in the country so far.
Iranian Health Minister Saeed Namaki stressed on April 7 effective measures to control coronavirus epidemic, expressing the hope that the disease would be controlled in Iran by late May.
“At present, the country is in the phase of disease management and we should not imagine that we have reached the harness and control phase. Today is the time for full-fledged combat against the virus. God willing, we will control coronavirus by late May. The virus should be controlled in the minimum possible time,” Namaki said, addressing the Iranian legislators in an open session of the parliament in Tehran.
He noted that at least 30% to 50% of hospital beds are still vacant across Iran and nearly 15,000 beds are ready to keep the patients who are recovering from coronavirus disease.
“We have now moved down to tank 6th in terms of deaths,” Namaki said, adding that the country’s situation in treatment of patients will improve in the next few days.
The coronavirus COVID-19 is affecting approximately all countries and territories around the world. The virus was first reported in the central Chinese city of Wuhan late last year. It has so far killed more than 154,700 people and infected over 2.26 million others globally.
The Iranian foreign ministry declared that despite Washington’s claims of cooperation to transfer drugs to Iran via the new Swiss-launched payment mechanism, the US is troubling the process amid the coronavirus outbreak in the country.
Although US claims that medicines and medical equipment are not under sanctions, they have practically blocked the transfer of Iran’s financial resources in other countries into the Swiss Humanitarian Trade Arrangement (SHTA), Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Seyed Abbas Mousavi said.
As the death toll from the virus surges, Iran intensifies its preventive safety measures. Closures of schools and most universities have been extended until late April.
The government also imposed travel restrictions, specially on Iran’s North, which is among the red zones. The country has also adopted strict digital health control procedures at airports to spot possible infections.
Namaki announced last month that a new national mobilization plan would be implemented across the country to fight against the coronavirus epidemic and more effectively treat patients.
Namaki said that the plan will include all the 17,000 health centers and the 9,000 medical and clinical centers in all cities, suburban areas and villages.
He added that the plan will include home quarantine, noting that infected people will receive the necessary medicines and advice, but they are asked to stay at home.
Namaki said that people with a more serious condition will stay at the hospitals, adding that the public places will be disinfected, the entries of infected towns and cities will be controlled to diagnose and quarantine the infected cases.
He added that the necessary equipment and facilities have been provided, expressing the hope that the epidemic would be curbed.
According to the latest statistics of Health Ministry, the number of medical laboratories to test coronavirus infection has reached over 90 across the country.
The World Health Organization (WHO) says Iran's response to the virus has so far been up to the mark. Still, it says the US sanctions are a big challenge, and Washington would be complicit in the rising death toll in Iran if it would not remove its sanctions.
The World Health Organization has considered priorities in combating coronavirus and Islamic Republic of Iran obeys and follows up priorities as defined by WHO.
The WHO is dispatching separate delegations to all countries.
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