A single inhaled dose treated or even prevented infection by COVID-19 and its variants
Current antibody treatments block SARS-CoV-2 by binding to one of three binding sites on the spike protein. A new protein-based antiviral binds to all three sites on the spike protein, making it more effective than current therapies. The new therapy also is low-cost, easy to manufacture, does not require complicated supply chains with extreme refrigeration and potentially could be self-administered.
A new protein-based antiviral nasal spray developed by researchers at Northwestern University, University of Washington and Washington University at St. Louis is being advanced toward Phase I human clinical trials to treat COVID-19.
Designed computationally and refined in the laboratory, the new protein therapies thwarted infection by interfering with the virus' ability to enter cells. The top protein neutralized the virus with similar or greater potency than antibody treatments with Emergency Use Authorization status from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Notably, the top protein also neutralized all tested SARS-CoV-2 variants, something that many clinical antibodies have failed to do.
When researchers administered the treatment to mice as a nasal spray, they found that the best of these antiviral proteins reduced symptoms of infection -- or even prevented infection outright.
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Yup. It's giffithsin based. I've written poetry on it. literally.