High School Students Recreate Life-Saving Drug For Lower Cost

A group of year 11 students are doing what "big pharma bro" and millionaire Martin Shkreli apparently can't. They have created a life-saving drug for an extremely reasonable price - $2 per dosage – all within the confines of their school room.

The drug Daraprim is an anti-parasitic drug that is extremely useful against malaria. In the US, one tablet used to cost $13.50. After Martin Shkreli purchased the company that created the drug, he raised the price to an astounding $750 per tablet. He claimed that the price increase was necessary to make the drug.

Well, the students at Sydney Grammar school, along with University of Sydney chemist Dr. Alice Williamson, didn't agree with Shkreli. So, they put it to the test and tried to make their own version of the drug – and they succeeded.

While working in the labs at Sydney Grammar school, the students were able to combine the necessary materials, create the proper chemical reactions, and develop the same drug. From the 17 grams of starting material, the class was able to create 3.7 grams of Daraprim – more than $110,000 worth.

There is only one problem, the students can't have their version of the drug tested as a generic version, so they can't sell it or make it available for those in need.

"While the drug is out of patent, Turing Pharmaceuticals controls its distribution and sale through a loophole called the 'closed distribution model'," explained an associate professor working on the project. "To take the drug to market as a generic, you need to compare it to Turing's product. If Turing won't allow the comparisons to take place, you'd need to fund a whole new trial."

Hopefully steps can be taken in the future to help make this life-saving and important drug more affordable to those who need it around the world.

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[H/T Sydney Morning Herald]