WHILE COVID19 VACCINE CANDIDATES ARE RACING AGAINST EACH OTHER, SCIENTISTS FIND A 'NEW' WAY TO ATTACK THE VIRUS IMMEDIATELY! DETAILS

While the world eagerly awaits a COVID19 vaccine, one of the biggest discoveries is coming from a class of biotech therapies which are widely used to treat cancer and other disorders. Instead of looking for vaccines, antibodies are being designed to specifically counter and attack the novel coronavirus.

Development of monoclonal antibodies has been endorsed by man scientist. Anthony Fauci, one of the top infectious diseases expert in US, called them “almost a sure bet” against COVID-19.

When a virus gets inside a patient’s body and crosses the initial defenses, the body responds with a more specific response which triggers the production of cells that target the invader. These include antibodies that lock the virus and prevent it from spreading to other parts of the body. 

Scientists are considering to produce the copies of monoclonal antibodies which are grown in bioreactor vats which are naturally occurring proteins. 

Scientists are currently working to find the exact role of neutralizing antibodies but drug makers are confident that the accurate combination can cure or control the spread of the virus.

“Antibodies can block infectivity. That is a fact,” Regeneron Pharmaceuticals executive Christos Kyratsous told Reuters.

Antibodies are also expected to attack the virus within a shorter time period as opposed to vaccines. “The advantage of an antibody is that it is basically instant immunity,” said Mark Brunswick, senior vice president at Sorrento Therapeutics, which aims to begin human trials next month of a single antibody candidate.

There are also questions about when in the course of the illness, should one employ these new techniques such as using antibodies. “Giving an antibody later on after infection might not be that helpful, said Florian Krammer, microbiology professor at New York’s Icahn School of Medicine. “Given early, they probably work well.”