NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) — What could be a breakthrough in a treatment for COVID-19 was announced in Pittsburgh on Thursday. As CBS2’s Dr. Max Gomez reported, it’s a kind of super-powerful antibody drug that could be given nasally — and it comes from llamas. Antibodies in plasma from recovered coronavirus patients or made in the lab may be effective treatments for COVID-19, but they do have drawbacks. They’re hard to make, expensive, they have to given intravenously, and are not that stable. That’s where Wally the llama comes in. MORE : Coronavirus Vaccine Update: Pfizer To Begin Testing In Children 12 And Up, Eli Lilly Pauses Trial Of Antibody Treatment It turns out llamas make human-like antibodies to coronavirus. But they also make tiny fragments of the full-size antibodies dubbed “nano-antibodies.” Researchers from the University of Pittsburgh isolated those tiny pieces, and at a news conference Thursday announced the huge advantages the nano-antibodies have over full-size antibodies. “Our nano-antibodies are extremely stable. They can sit at room temperature for up to more than six weeks, or longer. They can be freeze dried for shipping and storage, which is really important for the drug developments,” said Dr. Yi Shi of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC Tri-State Coronavirus Travel Advisory Quarantine List Resources, Hotlines, Unemployment & Covering Bills Remote Learning Tools For Parents Teaching At Home CBS2’s Dr. Max Answers Your Health Questions What To Do If Someone Isn’t Social Distancing Or Wearing A Mask? Expert: Parents Be Mindful Of Children’s Stress After Months Of Isolation Chopper 2 Over Empty NYC Streets, Landmarks Complete Coronavirus Coverage The nano-antibodies are also many times more powerful at neutralizing the COVID-19 virus than large antibodies. The drug that will soon be tested in humans will not be made in llamas. That’s just where they were discovered. These nano-bodies are very easy to manufacture and because they have been shown safe in animals, human clinical trials should be smaller and faster than vaccine trials, Gomez reported. MORE FROM CBS NEW YORK New York City’s New Quarantine Travel Rules Begin, New Jersey Adds States To Advisory List More Than 2,000 Inmates Released Early From New Jersey State Prisons In Effort To Prevent COVID Spread NYPD: At Least 50 People Arrested After Attempting To ‘Hijack’ Peaceful Protest In Midtown You can get the latest news, sports and weather on our brand new CBS New York app. Download here .
Original post:
Dr. Max Gomez: Super-Powerful COVID-19 Treatment Derived From Llamas May Be Game-Changer
