Merck rejects ivermectin for COVID treatment and gets a $1.2 billion government contract for its expensive, unproven drug. And, the drug, molnupiravir, contains some of the same molecular qualities as ivermectin.
Dr. Syed Mobeen "it seems that molnupiravir is a copy of one of Ivermectin's mechanisms."
"This mechanism is to disrupt the SARS-COV-2 virus' RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) enzyme," said Dr. Mobeen, who runs a medical education center. "Copying this mechanism will give Merck a way to earn from an existing cheap drug's action by relabeling it; however, I believe that molnupiravir will continue to be less effective as studies show that ivermectin has more mechanisms to disrupt the SARS-COV-2 replication and spread. Hence, ivermectin will continue to be a superior choice over molnupirivir or other RdRp disrupters."