[D66] Geneesmiddel tegen Covid-19 gevonden bij lama's (Wuhan Coronavirus 2019-nCoV #179)

[Dr. Marc-Alexander Fluks]

Bron:  VIB
Datum: 5 mei 2020
Opm:   Het nieuws wordt vandaag gebracht door CNN; geinterviewd
        worden Nico Callewaert en Bert Schepens
URL:   
http://www.vib.be/en/news/Pages/Towards-antibodies-against-COVID-19.aspx


Towards antibodies against COVID-19
-----------------------------------

​The lab of Xavier Saelens (VIB-UGent Center for Medical Biotechnology) 
announces the isolation and characterization of a unique antibody that 
can bind to the virus that causes COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2). The antibody 
was described in collaboration with research groups in the US. The team 
has established that the antibody binds to a conserved epitope on the 
spike protein of SARS-CoV-2. Importantly, the antibody can neutralize a 
lab variant of the virus, an important step forward in the development 
of a potential antiviral drug against the new coronavirus. Their work 
appears in Cell.


An antibody against COVID-19

Since the start of the COVID-19 outbreak, the quest for finding 
antibodies has proceeded relentlessly. The team of professor Xavier 
Saelens, in close collaboration with the lab of Jason McLellan 
(University of Texas at Austin, US) have isolated and characterized a 
small antibody derived from llamas that binds an important part of the 
SARS-CoV-2 virus.

Their findings show exactly where the antibody binds to the virus’ S 
proteins. These proteins are of vital importance to the virus as they 
enable it to enter host cells. By targeting these proteins, the antibody 
can neutralize the virus. This is an important step forward in the 
pursuit of an antiviral drug against COVID-19.


En route to protection

The new results provide the first evidence that the antibody could 
prevent the new coronavirus from infecting human cells. Importantly, the 
antibody can also be produced at large-scale using production processes 
that are common in the biopharmaceutical industry.

Prof. Saelens emphasizes: “This is a very important step forward in the 
fight against COVID-19, made possible by joining forces of my and Nico 
Callewaert’s team (VIB-UGent Center for Medical Biotechnology).”

Dr. Bert Schepens, staff scientist in the team of Prof. Saelens: “Good 
teamwork is crucial. We can count on the expertise in the research 
center, and colleagues from across VIB. Key to the progress we made is 
the long-standing collaboration with the labs of Jason Mclellan and 
Barney Graham.  The moment we observed virus neutralization in these 
experiments really felt like a collective victory.”

In contrast to vaccines, an antibody offers immediate protection – 
though of shorter duration. The advantage of this approach over vaccines 
is that patients don’t need to produce their own antibodies. The most 
vulnerable groups, such as the elderly, often mount a modest response to 
vaccines, which means that their protection may be incomplete. 
Healthcare workers or people at increased risk of exposure to the virus 
can also benefit from an immediate protection. This type of medicine can 
therefore be an important tool in fighting the current pandemic.


The next steps

The VIB researchers are preparing the preclinical test phase for a 
coronavirus treatment. Although these first results are highly 
promising, further research is necessary to confirm the full potential 
of this antibody-based drug directed against COVID-19. VIB’s Technology 
Transfer team together with researchers of VIB Discovery Sciences 
provide outstanding support en route to clinical development of this 
anti-COVID-19 drug candidate.


Study

Wrapp, De Vlieger et al. 2020. Structural Basis for Potent 
Neutralization of Betacoronaviruses by Single-domain Camelid Antibodies. 
Cell.​
https://www.cell.com/cell/fulltext/S0092-8674(20)30494-3

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(c) 2020 VIB