Oseltamivir INN ( /ɒsəlˈtæmɨvɪər/), marketed under the trade name Tamiflu, is an antiviral drug, which may slow the spread of influenza (flu) virus between cells in the body by stopping the virus from chemically cutting ties with its host cell. The drug is taken orally in capsules or as a suspension. It has been used to treat and prevent influenza A virus and influenza B virus infection in over 50 million people since 1999.
Oseltamivir is a prodrug, a (relatively) inactive chemical which is converted into its active form by metabolic process after it is taken into the body. It was the first orally active neuraminidase inhibitor commercially developed. It was developed by C.U. Kim, W. Lew, and X. Chen of US-based Gilead Sciences, and is marketed by Genentech. Some have reported that the median time to symptom alleviation is reduced by 0.5–1 day. There have been question about its efficacy as the company that manufactures it (Roche) has refused to release the trial data for independent analysis. As of December 15, 2010 (2010 -12-15), the World Health Organization (WHO) reported 314 samples of the prevalent 2009 pandemic H1N1 flu tested worldwide have shown resistance to oseltamivir.
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