With every passing day, COVID-19 is taking a tighter grasp on our planet and its people. However, scientists too are progressing one step at a time, with every passing day to take down the novel coronavirus.?
And today, Israel¡¯s Institute for Biological Research has revealed that they¡¯ve had a significant breakthrough towards treating COVID-19 pandemic.
This was announced by Israel¡¯s Defence Minister Naftali Bennett, who stated that ¡° the monoclonal neutralising antibody developed at the Israel Institute for Biological Research (IIBR) can neutralise it (the disease-causing coronavirus) inside carriers' bodies."
Moreover, according to IIBR Director Shmuel Shapira, the antibody formula is currently in the process of being patented, post which they¡¯ll look for an international manufacturer who would mass-produce the antibody formula.?
IIBR has been responsible in leading Israel¡¯s efforts for creating a treatment and vaccine for the novel coronavirus. This includes testing of blood from those who recovered from COVID-19.
They¡¯ve extracted antibodies (immune system proteins that are left after successfully destroying COVID-19 in the body) from such samples that are seen as a potential method of developing a cure for the pandemic-causing coronavirus.?
According to reports, the antibody that IIBR has developed is monoclonal which indicates that it was derived from a single recovered cell and thus is a lot more potent and valuable to deliver a positive result.?
The other kind that is also being tested by several researchers around the world is called polyclonal that is derived from two or more cells of different lineage.?
Another research team MigVax based in Israel has also reported that they¡¯re quite close to the first phase of development of COVID-19 vaccine. It had announced that it has secured $12 million investment from OurCrowd to take things to the next level.?
Bennett said in a statement on Monday, ¡°I am proud of the Biological Institute staff, who have made a major breakthrough. Jewish creativity and ingenuity brought about this amazing achievement.¡±