Scientists discover antibodies capable of stopping several coronaviruses, potentially preventing future outbreaks
By: Noushin Ziafati CTVNews. (Canada Television News)
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Scientists discover antibodies capable of stopping several coronaviruses, potentially preventing future outbreaks
FILE - This undated electron microscope image made available by the U.S. National Institutes of Health in February 2020 shows the Novel Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2, orange, emerging from the surface of cells, green, cultured in the lab. (NIAID-RML via AP)
Newly discovered antibodies can neutralize virtually all known variants of COVID-19 and may have the potential to prevent future coronavirus outbreaks, according to a new study .
Published in the peer-reviewed Science Advances journal Thursday, the study describes how a team of researchers was able to isolate potent neutralizing antibodies from a recovered SARS patient, who was vaccinated against COVID-19, that “exhibited remarkable breadth” against known sarbecoviruses, or respiratory viruses, like SARS and COVID-19.
The international team was led by Duke-NUS Medical School and involved scientists from the National University of Singapore, the University of Melbourne in Australia and the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in the United States.
By isolating antibodies from the COVID-19-vaccinated SARS survivor, the researchers found that the combination of prior coronavirus infection and vaccination generated an “extremely broad and powerful” antibody response — capable of stopping nearly all related coronaviruses tested.
“This work provides encouraging evidence that pan-coronavirus vaccines are possible if they can ‘educate’ the human immune system in the right way,” senior author Wang Linfa, a professor and bat virus expert with Duke-NUS’ Emerging Infectious Diseases Programme, said in a news release.
In total, the team obtained six antibodies that could neutralize multiple coronaviruses, including COVID-19, its variants Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta and Omicron, the original SARS virus, along with multiple other animal coronaviruses transmitted from bats and pangolins.
Co-author Chia Wan Ni, a former postdoctoral fellow in Linfa’s lab who now works with Singapore start-up CoV Biotechnology, said three antibodies stood out as “exceptionally broad and potent,” capable of neutralizing all tested SARS-related viruses “at very low concentrations.”
The researchers found that the most powerful antibody, named E7, was able to neutralize both SARS and COVID-19, animal sarbecoviruses, as well as new COVID-19 variants, such as Omicron XBB.1.16.
E7 was shown to target a region of the coronavirus’ spike protein and blocked the shape-shifting process the virus requires to infect cells and cause illness, the study notes.
“The (neutralizing) potency and breadth of the E7 antibody exceeded any other SARS-related coronavirus antibodies we’ve come across,” said Chia.
“It maintained activity against even the newest Omicron subvariants, while most other antibodies lose effectiveness.”
The study’s findings provide a foundation for designing vaccines and drugs that work against COVID-19 variants and future coronavirus threats.
“This work demonstrates that induction of broad sarbecovirus-(neutralizing) antibodies is possible—it just needs the right immunogenic sequence and method of delivery,” said Wang.
“This provides hope that the design of a universal coronavirus vaccine is achievable.”
The researchers plan to further assess the E7 antibody's potential against existing and future coronaviruses.
“This collaborative effort led by … Wang and his team expands our capability in protecting against coronavirus threats that currently threaten human health, as well as new viruses that may emerge in the future,” said Patrick Tan, senior vice-dean for research and professor at Duke-NUS Medical School.
“This underscores the pivotal role basic science research plays in advancing knowledge, with the goal of discovering new approaches to transform medicine and improve lives.”
The administrator of this group reserves the right, along with the site moderators, to moderate all and any postings to this group, including the right to enforce the ToS, the CoC, and also including anything that the administrator deems within his sole discretion to be offensive, including but not limited to political and/or off topic comments, with the power to delete in exercising that right.
It would be best, therefore, to be civil in posting on this group and not contravene the CoC, the ToS, and to not post comments that are political, insulting, taunting, trollling or offensive.
By now it should be well known that I am unable to open certain sources, videos and pictures. If I cannot, I will ask that they be described and explained. If the poster refuses to comply, their comment will be deleted. Instagrams are banned.
Tags
Who is online
566 visitors
This is the best news I've ever seen about dealing with the covid virus.
Sounds really promising Buzz.
Hope that the development of a vaccine using that science gets adequately funded by government. People still die from it, and creating a vaccine that works should be a priority.
Still waiting for a cure for the long haul covid that I've been dealing with for years now.
They tell me that I have an overactive immune system that just won't stop fighting.
Normally that is a good thing but just not against covid.
My body just keeps cycling through all of the signs and symptoms even though I no longer test positive.
Had the Pfizer vaccine and boosters early but had already caught covid before they were available.
Nothing seems to work for long covid except to just keep treating it symptomatically.
I'm still living with long covid.
You have my sympathy. Hope yours doesn't last as long as mine.
I find Diphenhydramine and Ibuprofen to help with most symptoms.
My symptoms are minimal, but enough to require me to take it easy and be careful.
Destroyed 2 big screen TVs from losing my balance.
Both the initial covid and the long haul were mostly moderate.
Did you get the rash and black toe? They were my initial symptoms.
No. But I still have a very mininal fever, sometimes get out of breath doing even simple things, can't totally clear my breathing passages, and have some digestive problems.
It sounds like it could work against a number of diseases, not just covid. The problem is it could also prevent the common cold and big pharma can't have that gravy train come to the end of the line.
Help could soon be on its way....
Suffering from long COVID? How new NIH study could help ease …
Web 7 hours ago · Here's how a new NIH study could help ease symptoms Adrianna Rodriguez USA TODAY The National Institutes of Health is calling on long COVID patients to …
Hopefully, this will provide the basis for vaccines with broader effectiveness, as well as a monoclonal antibody treatment for those who do contract Covid.
Hear hear!!!
Good news
For sure.