StemCell Therapy

It seems as though a llama may hold the answer we've been waiting for, in terms of combatting the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. A study conducted at Uniformed Services University's (USU) Center for Neuroscience and Regenerative Medicine showed that nanobodies produced by an absolutely gorgeous llama named Cormac may potentially be able to protect human lungs from infections such as COVID-19.

As previously mentioned, USU's researchers have been working with specific antibodies known as nanobodies derived from camels and llamas, which may be able to take down the coronavirus pandemic. According to the U.S. Department of Defense, when manipulated in the form of an aerosol or liquid form, nanobodies can act as a virus preventative and combatant. They weigh about 10 percent of a human antibody, and can apparently recognize virus proteins, latch themselves on, and fight them off.

Nanobodies are cheap and easy to work with in the realm of medical engineering, which is why USU's researchers had been testing them for months. Eventually, they discovered that Cormac the llama was producing a certain type of nanobody, NIH-CoVnb-112, which is thought to prevent, detect, and disembody SARS-CoV-2 spike proteins. Scientists tested this by immunizing Cormac five times over the course of a few weeks, using low levels of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein, and seeing how he reacted.

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From doing this, researchers found that Cormac was producing low levels of the NIH-CoVnb-112 nanobodies, which latch onto the COVID-19 protein and prevent it from entering the body's cells. The nanobodies were then further tested in terms of infection prevention in petri dishes, and were eventually tested through an inhaler that used on asthma patients, which showed could work to treat patients in the form of a spray, according to National Institutes of Health.

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"One of the exciting things about nanobodies is that, unlike most regular antibodies, they can be aerosolized and inhaled to coat the lungs and airways," said Dr. David Brody, director of USU's Center for Neuroscience and Regenerative Medicine, and leader of the study. "This is promising in that it could potentially be used to protect the lungs from infections."

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See the original post:
How Are Llamas Helping Cure the Coronavirus? Here's What We Know - Green Matters

This entry was posted on January 12, 2021 at 3:53 am and is filed under Preventative Medicine. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed. |