A breakthrough antiviral inhaler might block coronavirus infections

[Chris Smith]

• A breakthrough coronavirus cure may have been discovered, an antiviral nasal spray that would be easy to administer. The compound in the aerosol would act as a neutralizing antibody, blocking the virus from infecting cells.
• The University of California San Francisco's AeroNabs invention is based on llama-inspired nanobodies that could bind to the spike protein of the coronavirus and prevent it from linking up to ACE2 receptors.
• The researchers think the drug could protect COVID-19 until vaccines are ready.
• While a paper explaining the science behind AeroNabs exists, the drug has not been tested in clinical trials on humans, and there's no telling whether it'll ever reach that stage.

Researchers from Synairgen revealed a few weeks ago that a nebulizer that delivers interferon-beta aerosols directly into the lungs of infected COVID-19 patients could significantly improve their condition. That seemed to be the kind of breakthrough treatment the world could benefit from in the coming years until vaccines become widely available.

It turns out other researchers have been thinking of deploying antiviral drugs via inhalers, directly into the airways of patients. The University of California San Francisco (UCSF) created a nasal spray made of a particular type of neutralizing-antibody-like proteins that can block the virus from infecting cells. This, too, could be the kind of drug the world needs right now. But AeroNabs still needs clinical testing to prove it can do what the researchers say it does.

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A breakthrough antiviral inhaler might block coronavirus infections originally appeared on BGR.com on Wed, 12 Aug 2020 at 21:06:15 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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