Latest news with #Kovalčík
Time of India
a day ago
- Health
- Time of India
Meet Adam Kovalčík: Teen scientist whose breakthrough could slash the costs of lifesaving drugs for Ebola, COVID-19 and more
Image credits: Getty Images (Representative Image) A 19-year-old from Slovakia was flying to an international science competition in Ohio, with an idea that he didn't expect to win big, but loved enough to showcase to the world. Adam Kovalčík, a teen from a small village in a European country, not only walked away with the George D. Yancopoulos Innovator Award but also a $100,000 top prize for his breakthrough idea that could slash the cost of antiviral drugs. Adam Kovalčík's innovative method Image credits: Getty Images According to a Business Insider report, Kovalčík created a simplified drug production method using corn husks in place of the most costly ingredients. The young prodigy had aimed to make galidesivir cheaper and faster to produce. The drug targets RNA viruses, including Ebola, Zika and COVID-19. He replaced the standard beginning materials with furfuryl alcohol, a compound that is derived from corn waste. Additionally, rather than assembling the molecule in multiple stages, he formed the core sugar in seven reactions, developing a shorter 10-step method from the conventional 15. This cuts the production time from nine to five days and reduces the cost per gram from $75 to just $12.50. What lies ahead? While his method would need to go through clinical trials before any wide-scale applications, the Regeneron judges were impressed and described his presentation as airtight. "This could be a huge step to help prevent some of these RNA viruses," said Chris RoDee, chemist and chair of the judging committee and retired patent examiner. "I cannot describe this feeling," Kovalčík told Business Insider after the live ceremony, adding that he was surprised to win, especially coming from a small Slovakian village. After the competition, he filed a preliminary patent and returned to his university lab to continue refining the synthesis. According to early computer modelling, one new molecule from his work may bind more effectively to viral enzymes than galidesivir. Kovalčík is also working on a side project that turns corn waste into fragrance compounds. His work is a part of a growing movement of scientists who are rethinking food waste to create big breakthroughs from small labs.
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
A 19-year-old won $100,000 for inventing a cheaper, faster way to make antiviral drugs out of corn husks
Adam Kovalčík, age 19, innovated a cheaper, faster way to produce an antiviral drug. Galidesivir targets RNA viruses like COVID-19, Ebola, and Zika but hasn't completed clinical trials. Kovalčík won a $100,000 science fair award for using corn waste to synthesize the drug. When Adam Kovalčík flew to Ohio for an international science competition, he did not expect to come home with $100,000. The 19-year-old from Dulovce, Slovakia won that sum on Friday, though, because he developed a faster and cheaper way to make an experimental antiviral drug called galidesivir, which targets RNA viruses like COVID-19, Ebola, and Zika virus. "This could be a huge step to help prevent some of these RNA viruses," Chris RoDee, a chemist and retired patent examiner, told Business Insider. Early studies have shown galidesivir can attack RNA viruses, but it has not undergone full clinical trials. Kovalčík thinks he can encourage further research by slashing the cost of producing the drug — from $75 per gram to about $12.50 per gram. That's because he used corn waste to synthesize twice as much of the drug in just 10 steps, rather than the 15 steps currently required for manufacturing. Kovalčík even went one step further: He used his method to make a new drug that could also fight RNA viruses. Kovalčík presented his findings at the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) in Columbus, Ohio, this week. The judging committee, which RoDee chaired, chose Kovalčík for the competition's top prize: the $100,000 George D. Yancopoulos Innovator Award. "I cannot describe this feeling," Kovalčík told BI after receiving the award in a lively ceremony on Friday. "I did not expect such a huge international competition to be won by someone from a small village in a small European country, so it was just pure shock." Student research at ISEF does not go through the rigorous peer-review process that studies pass before they're published in scientific journals. However, RoDee said that Kovalčík's chemistry was "really elegant" and his presentation to the judges was "bulletproof." Kovalčík's big cost-saving innovation started with corn husks. Well, it started with furfuryl alcohol, which comes from corn husks and is relatively cheap compared to other starting points for making drugs. One by one, Kovalčík added chemicals to a flask of furfuryl alcohol in the lab, like building blocks adding to the molecule, until he got a crucial sugar called aza-saccharide. It only took seven steps to get there. From there, it was only three more steps to get galidesivir. "He was able to shortcut this entire process," RoDee said. "He basically halved the number of steps because he just went in through a different door." Kovalčík's process takes five days. The conventional manufacturing method, he said, takes nine days. Eventually, he produced another drug, too. Based on early computer calculations, Kovalčík thinks his new molecule could be five times as effective as galidesivir against COVID-19 — binding more strongly to enzymes to kill the virus. Kovalčík said he's filed a preliminary patent on his drug-synthesis process. He also plans to work more with a research group at the Slovak University of Technology in Bratislava, which has supported his project so far. To be used commercially, Kovalčík's drug-manufacturing process would have to scale up. At the moment, he said, he's struggling to find a way to make more than 200 liters of galidesivir. He also plans to work with the university researchers on improving other drug-synthesis processes. "They actually have much more designs and much more new drugs to prepare and test," he said. Kovalčík's ambitions don't end with advancing drug manufacturing, though. He said he also wants to use his chemistry skills and prize money to start a company that manufactures eco-friendly perfumes from corn. "From the first time I stepped foot into a lab, I knew that I wanted to do something related to chemistry," Kovalčík said. Now that he's won recognition for it, he added, "I feel incredible." Read the original article on Business Insider
Business Insider
16-05-2025
- Health
- Business Insider
A 19-year-old won $100,000 for inventing a cheaper, faster way to make antiviral drugs out of corn husks
When Adam Kovalčík flew to Ohio for an international science competition, he did not expect to come home with $100,000. The 19-year-old from Dulovce, Slovakia won that sum on Friday, though, because he developed a faster and cheaper way to make an experimental antiviral drug called galidesivir, which targets RNA viruses like COVID-19, Ebola, and Zika virus. "This could be a huge step to help prevent some of these RNA viruses," Chris RoDee, a chemist and retired patent examiner, told Business Insider. Early studies have shown galidesivir can attack RNA viruses, but it has not undergone full clinical trials. Kovalčík thinks he can encourage further research by slashing the cost of producing the drug — from $75 per gram to about $12.50 per gram. That's because he used corn waste to synthesize twice as much of the drug in just 10 steps, rather than the 15 steps currently required for manufacturing. Kovalčík even went one step further: He used his method to make a new drug that could also fight RNA viruses. Kovalčík presented his findings at the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) in Columbus, Ohio, this week. The judging committee, which RoDee chaired, chose Kovalčík for the competition's top prize: the $100,000 George D. Yancopoulos Innovator Award. "I cannot describe this feeling," Kovalčík told BI after receiving the award in a lively ceremony on Friday. "I did not expect such a huge international competition to be won by someone from a small village in a small European country, so it was just pure shock." Student research at ISEF does not go through the rigorous peer-review process that studies pass before they're published in scientific journals. However, RoDee said that Kovalčík's chemistry was "really elegant" and his presentation to the judges was "bulletproof." From corn husks to antiviral medicine Kovalčík's big cost-saving innovation started with corn husks. Well, it started with furfuryl alcohol, which comes from corn husks and is relatively cheap compared to other starting points for making drugs. One by one, Kovalčík added chemicals to a flask of furfuryl alcohol in the lab, like building blocks adding to the molecule, until he got a crucial sugar called aza-saccharide. It only took seven steps to get there. From there, it was only three more steps to get galidesivir. "He was able to shortcut this entire process," RoDee said. "He basically halved the number of steps because he just went in through a different door." Kovalčík's process takes five days. The conventional manufacturing method, he said, takes nine days. Eventually, he produced another drug, too. Based on early computer calculations, Kovalčík thinks his new molecule could be five times as effective as galidesivir against COVID-19 — binding more strongly to enzymes to kill the virus. Big plans for drugs and perfume Kovalčík said he's filed a preliminary patent on his drug-synthesis process. He also plans to work more with a research group at the Slovak University of Technology in Bratislava, which has supported his project so far. To be used commercially, Kovalčík's drug-manufacturing process would have to scale up. At the moment, he said, he's struggling to find a way to make more than 200 liters of galidesivir. He also plans to work with the university researchers on improving other drug-synthesis processes. "They actually have much more designs and much more new drugs to prepare and test," he said. Kovalčík's ambitions don't end with advancing drug manufacturing, though. He said he also wants to use his chemistry skills and prize money to start a company that manufactures eco-friendly perfumes from corn. "From the first time I stepped foot into a lab, I knew that I wanted to do something related to chemistry," Kovalčík said. Now that he's won recognition for it, he added, "I feel incredible."
