Shionogi Signs Licensing Agreement With the Medicines Patent Pool for Its COVID-19 Antiviral Pill

Shionogi has signed a voluntary license agreement with the Medicines Patent Pool for the company’s antiviral candidate ensitrelvir fumaric acid.

The investigational antiviral drug is intended to treat COVID-19, but hasn’t received regulatory approval or authorization.

The agreement will allow the Medicines Patent Pool to grant sublicences to generic manufacturers pending the drug’s regulatory authorization or approval.

Ensitrelvir is being evaluated as a COVID-19 treatment to be administered as an oral tablet once daily for five days.