ITC trials nasal spray to ward off COVID-19
The Hindu
Developed by scientists at ITC Life Sciences and Technology Centre, Bengaluru, the company plans to market the nasal spray under the Savlon brand once it gets approvals
ITC on Thursday confirmed that it is developing a nasal spray for COVID-19 prevention for which it has initiated clinical trials.
Developed by scientists at ITC Life Sciences and Technology Centre, Bengaluru, the company plans to market the nasal spray under the Savlon brand once it gets approvals, according to sources. Confirming that clinical trials are underway, a spokesperson declined comment on where the trials were being done.
Sources said the firm had won approvals from ethics panels and is registered with Clinical Trial Registry-India for trials. The spray is designed to arrest the virus at the entry point in the nasal cavity itself.
Hampi, the UNESCO-recognised historical site, was the capital of the Vijayanagara empire from 1336 to 1565. Foreign travellers from Persia, Europe and other parts of the world have chronicled the wealth of the place and the unique cultural mores of this kingdom built on the banks of the Tungabhadra river. There are fine descriptions to be found of its temples, farms, markets and trading links, remnants of which one can see in the ruins now. The Literature, architecture of this era continue inspire awe.
Unfurling the zine handed to us at the start of the walk, we use brightly-coloured markers to draw squiggly cables across the page, starting from a sepia-toned vintage photograph of the telegraph office. Iz, who goes by the pronouns they/them, explains, “This building is still standing, though it shut down in 2013,” they say, pointing out that telegraphy, which started in Bengaluru in 1854, was an instrument of colonial power and control. “The British colonised lands via telegraph cables, something known as the All Red Line.”