Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic hit the world, countries have rallied all their health infrastructure and research funds to find an effective vaccine and other treatment options that can potentially cure affected people and inhibit the virus from spreading further.
India has contributed to this effort by researching the various ways in which the COVID-19 disease can be treated and eradicated. This collective effort between eminent scientists, biologists, medical researchers, and the government is important for India as it has many vulnerable populations and communities, thanks in no small part to the close proximity in which they live. With global efforts towards finding a foolproof treatment strategy against COVID-19 yet to bear fruit, India’s own quest for an effective treatment is all the more significant. If India succeeds, then it can lead the world at large towards a healthier tomorrow.
The most recent development on the COVID-19 treatment front is an antisera that was developed by injecting dormant COVID-19 virus in horses.
Equine antisera are said to have a high concentration of purified COVID-19 antibodies which are effective in neutralizing the dreadful virus. While the antisera isolated from its equine hosts fall under the category of antisera that is similar to mechanisms used to cure other bacterial and viral infections, there is no confirmation yet as to whether the isolated antisera can be effective as a treatment for humans.
The ICMR and Biological E Limited that have jointly taken up the responsibility of producing an effective treatment procedure for the COVID-19 virus have stated in an official tweet that while the antibodies against the COVID-19 virus have been isolated, there needs to be further in vivo testing to ensure that the antisera can cure COVID-19 patients completely. The ICMR has got permission from The Drugs Controller General of India to start a phase-1 human clinical trial of the antisera to find its compatibility with the human immune system and their ability to neutralize COVID-19 virus in the human body.
If successful in human trials, the antisera will be complimenting the plasma therapy method that is currently pursued now to cure patients. Plasma therapy is a donor-dependent treatment technique involving the donated plasma of cured COVID-19 patients. Plasma therapy, though efficient in curing many cases, is not a stable and reliable method, as the concentration and efficacy of the antibodies vary as do the individual response of patients’ bodies to them. Besides, it also depends on the donors, whose availability can never be guaranteed.
Therefore, the discovery of a new cost-effective treatment technique such as the antisera, which is donor independent and easily available, is important. The success of the antisera research will lend a new edge to the mass production of anti-COVID 19 drugs which can be circulated easily across the country.
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