Explained | Molnupiravir, Merck’s new drug to treat COVID-19
The Hindu
Data shows drug halves chances of hospitalisation in patients with mild to moderate disease
Pharmaceutical major Merck and Ridgeback Biotherapeutics announced via a press release on October 1 the early results from Phase-3 trials that its anti-viral drug with mild or moderate disease.
Placebo trials involve testing a drug on thousands of people, in which some of them get the drug and some — who are in a placebo group — do not. In the placebo arm, 53 patients of 14% were either hospitalised or had died, whereas in the group that got the drug, 28 — or 7.3% — were hospitalised or succumbed to the infection.

Dakshina Kannada Zilla Panchayat has rolled out digital mode of water bill generation and collection in 23 gram panchayats on a pilot basis for the first time in Karnataka. This is set to be extended to the remaining 200 panchayats shortly, according to the Zilla Panchayat Chief Executive Officer Narwade Vinayak Karbhari.

Microplastics, especially nylon fibres, are present in Chennai’s beach sediments in relatively low abundance, but low overall microplastic abundance does not necessarily imply low ecological risk. Even small particles can cause long-term ecological damage by affecting marine life, moving up the food chain, and eventually impacting human health through contaminated seafood.











