High school students reproduce a $270 malaria drug for only $2!

They wanted to take on Daraprim-maker for massive price-gouging, making the drug affordable for all

A group of Australian high school students remade the active ingredient for a malaria drug currently at the center of a drug-price controversy.

Six students from Sydney Grammar School and their science teacher drew global attention after announcing that they were able to make the drug Daraprim, a drug used to treat parasitic infections, at only $2 a dose –  a fraction of its listed price of $750.

Turing Pharmaceuticals, the manufacturer of the medicine, sparked tremendous outrage after buying the rights to Daraprim, which had no rival manufacturers, and promptly increasing the price per tablet from $13.50 to $750.

Following its vilification by global media as an example of pharmaceutical companies’ greed, Turing said it would cut the cost of the drug to hospitals.

One of the students, Brandon Lee, said that the group of students had wanted to prove that “these compounds which you think are only accessible to these large, large-scale companies are actually able to be accessed and produced by ordinary citizens.”

 

 

 

Sources: Scientific American, Reuters