Possible title: Could Tiny Ab8 Antibodies Hold the Key to Curing Covid-19?

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    Covid-19
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Discussion Overview

The discussion centers around the potential of Ab8 antibodies in treating and preventing Covid-19, referencing a preprint paper accepted by the journal Cell. Participants explore the implications of these antibodies, their application methods, and the details surrounding their development and approval process.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory, Technical explanation, Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants highlight that Ab8 antibodies have shown effectiveness in preventing and curing Covid-19 in animal models, as reported in the preprint paper.
  • Questions arise regarding the method of administration for prophylactic treatment, with suggestions including periodic intravenous infusions or intramuscular injections.
  • There is mention of the possibility of administering Ab8 via a nasal spray due to the small size of the particles, which may also reduce side effects since they do not show affinity for human cells.
  • Concerns are expressed about the timeline of the paper's approval, with participants speculating that there may have been issues that delayed its acceptance despite the fast-tracking of Covid-19 research.
  • Participants express a desire for more knowledgeable insights into the specifics of Ab8 antibodies, indicating a reliance on experts for deeper understanding.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally agree on the promising nature of Ab8 antibodies but express uncertainty regarding the specifics of their application and the approval process, indicating that multiple views and questions remain unresolved.

Contextual Notes

The discussion reflects limitations in understanding the full implications of the research, including the lack of detailed information on administration methods and the reasons behind the approval timeline.

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TL;DR
Preliminary animal models show very good response to Ab8 as prophylaxis and treatment of Covid-19
Paper preprint- accepted by Cell:
Journal (Pre-proof) High potency of a bivalent human VH domain in SARS-CoV-2 animal models

Wei Li, Alexandra Schäfer, Swarali S. Kulkarni, Xianglei Liu, David R. Martinez,Chuan Chen, Zehua Sun, Sarah R. Leist, Aleksandra Drelich, Liyong Zhang, MarcinL. Ura, Alison Berezuk, Sagar Chittori, Karoline Leopold, Dhiraj Mannar, Shanti S.Srivastava, Xing Zhu, Eric C. Peterson, Chien-Te Tseng, John W. Mellors, DarrylFalzarano, Sriram Subramaniam, Ralph S. Baric, Dimiter S. DimitrovPII:S0092-8674(20)31148-X
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2020.09.007

Popular version:
https://scitechdaily.com/ab8-covid-...-completely-neutralizes-the-sars-cov-2-virus/

Pitt researchers who created a similar tiny antibody to previous Coronavirus colds, have been researching something similar for Covid-19.
In animals - mice and hamsters - the Ab8 antibody prevents infection and is effective in curing the disease in progress.

@Ygggdrasil can probably explain the details of these Ab8 antibodies better than I could.
 
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Very interesting and promising. What's the route for prophylactic treatment? Periodic IV infusions? Periodic IM injections? I looked in the popular article, but was not able to find it.
 
The size of the Ab8 particles is so small that the article mentions the reasonable possibility of a nasal spray, plus Ab8 does not show affinity for human cells - which means less possibility for side effects. All per the article.
 
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The reason I want someone more knowledgeable in this field: The paper was submitted to Cell in May and just approved this week. I thought that Covid-19 articles like this were being fast-tracked, so maybe there were some concerns about the content. @Ygggdrasil , for example, is far more likely to know.
 
jim mcnamara said:
The size of the Ab8 particles is so small that the article mentions the reasonable possibility of a nasal spray, plus Ab8 does not show affinity for human cells - which means less possibility for side effects. All per the article.
Thanks. Yeah, that is mentioned in the Cell article, but not in the popular article. Very interesting! :smile: