Dengue cure: S'pore researchers move to next phase

[SINGAPORE] Even as the world's first dengue vaccine is set to hit Singapore shores next year, reseachers here are one step closer to finding the first antiviral drug that treats the illness.

Researchers from the Singapore General Hospital and Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School completed a study called CELADEN last year that found Celgosivir, a medicine derived from the seeds of the Moreton Bay Chestnut trees, to be safe for dengue patients.

The S$1.6 million clinical trial of the drug was conducted from July 2012 to March 2013 on 50 dengue patients.