Human trials are to start on a new nasal spray that could protect from all covid variants
Scientists say that the treatment contains ‘potent’ proteins which target the virus’s weak spots and prevent it from infecting the body.
As the virus continues to evolve, vaccines have become less effective at fighting Covid
Just last month, a number of antibody treatments were stopped in the United States after they failed to protect people against the BA.2 omicron sub variant.
American scientists have now come up with an easier solution to fight the virus and human clinical trials are to begin after promising results in mice.
The researchers designed proteins which target ‘vulnerable sites’ on the surface of Covid-19. The proteins, were reengineered to make them even more potent against the virus’ spike protein.
To make the drug far less likely to detach than other treatments, they targeted the virus’ infectious machinery’ in three places rather than one.
Professor Michael Jewett, of the University of Washington School of Medicine, explained that SARS-CoV-2’s spike protein has three binding domains, and common antibody therapies may only block one
He said: ‘Our minibinders sit on top of the spike protein like a tripod and block all three. The interaction between the spike protein and our antiviral is among the tightest interactions known in biology. When we put the spike protein and our antiviral therapeutic in a test tube together for a week, they stayed connected and never fell apart.’
After testing it on mice with a nasal spray, the researchers found that the treatment reduced Covid symptoms and prevented infections.
The proteins prevented Covid from binding to what’s known as the ACE2 receptor, the entry point for infecting the body.
Covid cannot infect the body without binding to the receptor, which suggests the treatment will work against new variants.
Professor Jewett added: ‘To enter the body, the spike protein and ACE2 receptor engage in a handshake. Our antiviral blocks this handshake and, as a bonus, has resistance to viral escape.’
This treatment could be an alternative to vaccines and would be less expensive to manufacture and are stable in high heat.
It could be made available in pharmacies as a preventative measure to treat infections, the researchers say.
The findings were published in the journal Science Translational Medicine.
