JUST IN: Russia presents Covid-19 TREATMENT drug (READ DETAIL)

While experts around the world have been trying to create a specific vaccine against the virus behind the global outbreak, there have also been active attempts to re-purpose existing medicines to help the scores of patients that badly need treatment.

After anti-malarial drugs were used in China, which managed to curb the coronavirus outbreak on its soil, they became the subject of research in many countries, including the US, Canada, France and others.

US President, Donald Trump, has been actively promoting hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine as "biggest game-changers" in the fight against the highly contagious disease, which already killed more than 1,900 in America and almost 30,000 worldwide.

The Russian pharmacists also believe in the effectiveness of malaria medication against the virus, but suggested that another drug - Mefloquine - should be employed. They said their treatment was developed taking Chinese and French experience into account.

The drug, which has been around since the 1970s, blocks the degenerative effect Covid-19 has on cells and doesn't allow the virus to replicate further, the Russian Federal Medical-Biological Agency (FMBA) said in a statement. They added that Mefloquine's immuno-suppressive effect prevents the inflammatory response caused by the disease.

The Russian medics have been working on "an effective and safe scheme to prevent coronavirus infection on the basis of mefloquine, which not only would overcome the peak of incidence but would also effectively control it in the future,ÔÇØ the FMBA said.

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