- Coronavirus vaccines are not the only new drugs COVID-19 in advanced testing. A different type of drug that could have a major impact on the pandemic is also approaching the final stages of human testing.
- Dr Anthony Fauci said that monoclonal antibody medications, which can neutralize the virus and provide temporary immunity to prevent infection, may be ready by early fall.
- The infectious disease expert did not mention any brand, but several drug manufacturers are testing those drugs.
It is not just the new candidates for the coronavirus vaccine that are in the advanced stages of human trials at this time, and it is not just the COVID-19 vaccines that may be ready for emergency use before the end of year. We have often talked about a new type of medicine that might work well against the new virus. On top of that, this category of drug technology can be applied to other infectious diseases to offer vaccine-like protection, though it would not be a long-lasting immunity like that obtained with vaccines. The best part is that Dr. Anthony Fauci is already confident that this new type of coronavirus medication could be available as early as this coming fall.
The director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases has not avoided expressing optimism regarding specific therapies that may work for COVID-19. He was the one who revealed that remdesivir can reduce recovery time. He praised the results of Moderna’s vaccine that showed that the drug can generate the neutralizing antibodies necessary to stop an infection. He also said more than once that if all goes well, the first COVID-19 vaccines could be available in late 2020 or early 2021.
His latest observations refer to monoclonal antibodies and were made during an interview with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg. We detailed several of the drugs currently being tested, including one that raised $ 450 million in US government funding. We also told you that some of these innovative drugs may be available even before vaccines, and Fauci seems to confirm that idea.
Monoclonal antibody drugs are synthetic drugs based on human or animal antibodies that can block the binding of the protein on the outside of the virus to ACE receptors on human cells in the lungs and other organs. This is the crucial process that the virus needs to infiltrate the cell and take over its colossal chemical plant. It is within cells that the virus makes thousands of copies of itself, which then infect other cells. The higher the viral load, the more likely a patient will develop symptoms and complications, especially if the immune system does not take action.
Many people can survive the infection on their own. They generate antibodies that bind to the spike protein and destroy the virus’s ability to replicate. But not all patients will be able to mount a robust immune response. The goal of vaccines is to teach the body to fight a COVID-19 infection and to generate circulating antibodies that neutralize the virus once it enters the body. But vaccines will do nothing for people who are already infected.
That’s where monoclonal antibody medications come in. They would come to the aid of the immune system in patients with coronavirus, lending them powerful antibodies that can block the virus. A patient could recover faster and avoid complications as a result. Monoclonal antibodies would also offer vaccine-like protection for people who are not infected, but immunity will disappear once circulating antibodies have disappeared from the system. Unlike vaccines, monoclonal antibody drugs do not teach the immune system to mass-produce new antibodies on demand.
Fauci described monoclonal drugs as “precise bullets”, for Bloomberg. “What we really need are medications that, when administered early, can prevent a symptomatic person from requiring hospitalization or dramatically decrease the time they are symptomatic,” Fauci said.
The doctor said he expects results of a monoclonal antibody clinical trial in late summer or early fall, without naming any specific companies working on the drugs. These trials are carried out in multiple phases, just like vaccine research. Drug manufacturers have online trials to test the efficacy of monoclonal drugs in existing patients with COVID-19 and to see if they can offer temporary immunity to uninfected patients.
Chris Smith began writing about gadgets as a hobby, and before he knew it, he was sharing his views on technology topics with readers around the world. Every time you don’t write about devices, you unfortunately don’t stay away from them, even though you desperately try. But that is not necessarily a bad thing.
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