According to a new study, a lalama named Valley may hold a key in the fight against coronavirus.
According to the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, citing the virus that causes COVID-19, researchers have found a way to extract small but extremely powerful SARS-COVID-2 antibody fragments from saliva. “
The so-called “nanobodies” – often more effective at neutralizing minor and deadly bugs than human antibodies – can be entered into inhable therapeutics with the potential to prevent and treat the disease, according to the university.
“Nature is our best inventor,” said Yi Shi, an assistant professor of cell biology at Pitt.
He added, “The technology we have developed is disabling nanobodies on an unprecedented basis, allowing us to quickly detect thousands of nanobodies with unique relationships and specificity.”
To create the nanobodies, the senior author turned to Vally Lee, who resembles a black lala and shares his name with a black Labrador named Shi.
Scientists vaccinated VW from a piece of mistaken spike protein – and about two months later, the animal’s immune system produces mature nanobodies.
According to Pitt, Uefi Xiang, a research assistant at Shini Lab, identified the nanobodies in Valli’s blood, which binds the coronavirus very strongly, according to Pitt.
With the help of the School of Vaccine Research Center, the scientists exposed their nanobodies to live viruses and discovered that only a fraction of a nanogram could be neutral enough to protect millions of human cells from infection.
“These nanobodies represent some of the most effective therapeutic antibody candidates for SARS-CV-2, hundreds to thousands of times more effective than other llama nanobodies discovered by similar phage display methods used for decades to make fish for human monoclonal antibodies.” Pitt.
Shiny frozen nanobodies can stay at room temperature for up to six weeks and are used to create inhaled mist to deliver antiviral therapy directly to the lungs.
In contrast, conventional antibodies require IV, which dilutes the product and requires very large doses, costing patients and insurers about 000 100,000 per course of treatment, the university says.
“Nanobodies can potentially cost very little,” Shea said. “They are ideal for considering the urgency and severity of the current crisis.”
Paul Duprex, co-author of the study and director of the Vaccine Research Center, said: “As a virologist, it is incredible to see how the ingenuity of the Lama antibody pay generation can be translated into the formation of powerful nanovepans against clinical isolates. SARS-CoV-2. “
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