TEHRAN – Iranian scientists have developed specific serums for envenoming by snakebites in Iraq, according to Razi Vaccine and Serum Research Institute.

The antivenom for scorpion and snakes’ bites is the first biological product registered in Iraq, Fakhreddin Rahmani, Razi Institute chairman of the board, said.

Due to the success of the registration process, our long-term plan is to establish a filling site in Iraq and Baghdad, to maintain the export market forever, he added, Mehr reported on Saturday.

Stating that no country has succeeded in registering its biological products in Iraq, he said that we currently have no competitors in the field of snake and scorpion antidotes in Iraq, and this is a success for both countries.

Biotechnology development

Biotechnology today is widespread in all fields and is no longer limited to biomedical drugs so it has replaced the injured limbs.

Nearly 800 knowledge-based companies in the country are currently operating in the field of biotechnology and supplying their products and services to the domestic market

Earlier in May 2021, the Biotechnology Development Council launched 129 production projects with the aim of saving up to $1.44 billion of foreign currency.

Iran is ranked 12th in the world and first in West Asia in terms of biotechnology, as 9.5 percent of the income of knowledge-based companies and more than 60 percent of their exports are related to biotechnology.

Foreign exchange savings of $1 billion per year by producing 22 biopharmaceuticals, gaining the first rank in biotechnology products and vaccines in West Asia, and the presence among the top five biotechnology producers in Asia are among the country’s achievements, Mostafa Ghanei, secretary of the biotechnology development office of the Vice Presidency for Science and Technology, said in October 2020.

So far, 27 biotechnology medicines, 12 vaccine projects, 90 pharmaceutical raw materials, and 55 projects in agriculture and food security have been implemented in order to gain a 3 percent market share and biotechnology assistance to the development of the economy, he explained.

Some 8 major companies are responsible for managing the country's 117 priority products in the fields of biopharmaceuticals, pharmaceutical raw materials, vaccines, probiotics, equipment, and chemical drugs, he emphasized.

FB/MG