Production of low cost interferon injection: Senate body asks NIH to reinitiate work

The Senate Standing Committee on Cabinet Division and Capital Administration on Tuesday asked National Institute of Health (NIH) to reinitiate work on local production of low cost interferon injections (hepatitis vaccine) in co-ordination with Riazuddin Sheikh-the scientist who developed it, Health Services Academy (HSA) and Pakistan Medical Research Centre (PMRC).
The committee met here at Parliament House with Senator Kalsoom Parveen in the chair. The committee expressed serious concerns over hurdles being created in local production of interferon by Ministry of Science and Technology and the powerful mafia. The committee directed NIH to start work on the development of interferon injection in co-ordination with Riazuddin Sheikh, HSA and PMRC.
The meeting was also attended by Senator Dr Saeeda Iqbal, Senator Rubina Khalid, Senator Abdul Haseeb Khan, Senator Kamil Ali Agha, additional secretary of cabinet division, Executive Director (ED) NIH, acting ED (HSA) and other senior officials.
Senator Kamil Ali Agha said that local production of interferon injection would provide massive relief to the hepatitis patients. "Huge numbers of hepatitis patients are running from pillar to post as they could not afford the expensive/ imported interferon injections," he said.
Acting executive director HAS, Dr Huma Qureshi, told the committee that a group of researchers led by Sheikh had been working on the vaccine in the Centre of Excellence in Molecular Biology, Centre of Applied Molecular Biology and the Allama Iqbal Medical College (AIMC) and had successfully developed a low-cost, locally produced vaccine against Hepatitis-C. The domestically-developed interferon was tested in a German laboratory for safety and was found safe, meaning it is at par with the interferon approved by the World Health Organization (WHO), she said.
She said that team of scientists had also conducted clinical test or human test (Phase-I)of the locally-produced interferon injection, but due to interference of Ministry of Science and Technology and influential mafia clinical trial, Phase-II, could not be completed. She also revealed that a large number of interferon injections, costing million of rupees, had expired because of interference of Ministry of Science and Technology and influential mafia.
The committee also expressed anger over the delay in appointment of ED HSA and issued directives to the cabinet division to appoint ED HSA within a week. Senator Kalsoom Parveen said that HSA was one of the important institutions in the country and it would collapse if it remained without head for long time. "Cabinet division is fully involved in the long delay in the appointment of ED HSA and they would be responsible for the collapse of the HSA", she said.
The committee also recommended to the provincial government to set-up allergy centre in all four provinces on the pattern of NIH allergy centre to facilitate people.