COVID-19：日本将阿维甘送往43个国家进行冠状病毒研究
东京（共同社）-
日本外务大臣茂木敏俊周五表示，日本将向43个国家免费提供抗流感药物阿维甘，以进行其作为冠状病毒治疗的临床研究。
Motegi说，预计该药物将在黄金周假期后至5月6日寄出，这推迟了他先前的预测，即本周可能开始出货。
约有80个国家对阿维根表示了兴趣，
Motegi先前表示已经安排将其发送到38。
孟加拉国，
多米尼加共和国，
老挝，
卡塔尔和
乌兹别克斯坦
have since been added to the list of recipients, according to the Foreign Ministry.
Japan is paying for the initiative through a $1 million grant to the United Nations Office for Project Services, which will buy and distribute the drug.
Each country will receive enough to treat between 20 and 100 people for research purposes, Motegi said.
“We will cooperate with the private sector as well as the international community to develop a treatment” for coronavirus, he told a press conference.
Japan has been conducting clinical studies into Avigan after Chinese scientists suggested it had been effective in treating COVID-19 patients, especially those with mild symptoms.
The drug, also known as favipiravir, was developed by a subsidiary of Fujifilm Holdings Corp.
Japan plans to triple its stockpile of Avigan, enough to treat 2 million people, while China has said it will officially adopt it as part of its treatment guidelines for coronavirus.
As the drug is feared to cause birth defects, it cannot be used on pregnant women.
The Mainichi
https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20200501/p2g/00m/0na/091000c