MOSCOW, October 7 (RIA Novosti) - Japanese company Fujifilm's anti-influenza drug favipiravir has drawn international attention as a potential medicine to treat the Ebola virus, The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday.
The Japanese company was cited by the newspaper as saying that France and Guinea were already considering testing the drug in November.
US company MediVector, Fujifilm's partner in the United States, is said to be currently in talks with the US Food and Drug Administration to prepare for the trials of the drug in treating Ebola.
The company has received requests from several other countries and international organizations on the matter of providing the medication, to which Fujifilm will respond in coordination with Japanese authorities, the newspaper reported.
In September, Fujifilm reported that favipiravir was administered to a patient infected with Ebola at a hospital in France who managed to recover from the disease.
The anti-influenza medicine was created by Toyama Chemical, a Fujifilm subsidiary. In March 2014, Fujifilm said that the Japanese Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry approved the drug.
On Tuesday, in light of the international attention to the drug, Fujifilm's share prices on the Tokyo Stock Exchange reached 3,800 yen ($35), its highest since June 2008.
