The New York Times reports:
A nasal spray that blocks the absorption of the SARS-CoV-2 virus has completely protected ferrets it was tested on, according to a small study released on Thursday by an international team of scientists. The study, which was limited to animals and has not yet been peer-reviewed, was assessed by several health experts at the request of The New York Times.
If the spray, which the scientists described as nontoxic and stable, is proved to work in humans, it could provide a new way of fighting the pandemic. A daily spritz up the nose would act like a vaccine.
Snard (Slashdot reader #61,584) shared Columbia’s announcement:
The compound in the spray — a lipopeptide developed by Anne Moscona, MD, and Matteo Porotto, PhD, professors in the Department of Pediatrics and directors of the Center for Host-Pathogen Interaction — is designed to prevent the new coronavirus from entering host cells. The antiviral lipopeptide is inexpensive to produce, has a long shelf life, and does not require refrigeration. These features make it stand out from other antiviral approaches under development, including monoclonal antibodies. The new nasal lipopeptide could be ideal for halting the spread of COVID in the United States and globally; the transportable and stable compound could be especially key in rural, low-income, and hard-to-reach populations.
A preprint of the study appeared in bioRxiv on November 5; a paper describing a first generation of the compound and its effect in a 3D model of the human lung first appeared in the journal mBio on October 20. In this human lung model, the compound was able to extinguish an initial infection, prevent spread of the virus within the lung, and was not at all toxic to the airway cells.
Ferrets are often used in studies of respiratory diseases because the lungs of these animals and humans are similar… The antiviral is easily administered and, based on the scientists’ experience with other respiratory viruses, protection would be immediate and last for at least 24 hours.
The scientists hope to rapidly advance the preventative approach to human trials with the goal of containing transmission during this pandemic.
of this story at Slashdot.
Source:: Slashdot