[Featured Stock] Myeongmun Pharmaceutical Rises on Spotlight for Producing COVID Enzyme 'Protease' Inhibitors

[Asia Economy Reporter Minwoo Lee] Myungmoon Pharmaceutical is on the rise following news that it has produced a drug capable of blocking the infiltration of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19).

As of 9:54 AM on the 25th, Myungmoon Pharmaceutical recorded 4,650 KRW, up 5.92% from the previous day. This appears to be due to the delayed revelation of its history of producing a product containing the drug 'Camostat Mesylate,' which inhibits the 'protease' necessary for COVID-19 to penetrate the body.

Earlier, on the 6th, infectious biologists at the Leibniz Primate Research Institute in G?ttingen, Germany, published research on substances that inhibit coronavirus infiltration in the international academic journal Cell. According to the study, the human protease 'TMPRSS2' is necessary for the virus to enter cells. Inhibiting this protease means blocking viral infection. Camostat Mesylate, a drug that inhibits protease TMPRSS2, has already been commercialized, and Myungmoon Pharmaceutical had produced CNP tablets containing 100 milligrams of Camostat Mesylate as the main ingredient back in 2016.

On the 20th, Professor Rolf Hilgenfeld's research team at the Center for Structural and Cell Biology at the University of L?beck, Germany, also published in the international academic journal Science that blocking the protease 'M protease,' which is necessary for COVID-19 replication, is effective. The researchers emphasized that after analyzing the structure of COVID-19 drug targets at the molecular level, existing drugs used for coronavirus treatment should be modified accordingly.