Scientists claim to have isolated a key coronavirus antibody that they say can ‘neutralise’ the disease in a patient
Israel claims a “significant breakthrough” towards a treatment for Covid-19 after isolating a key coronavirus antibody at its main biological research laboratory, the defence minister said on Monday night.
Israel is one of dozens of countries racing to find a cure or a vaccine for Covid-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus that emerged in China in December.
The “monoclonal neutralising antibody” developed at the Israel Institute for Biological Research (IIBR) “can neutralise it [the disease-causing coronavirus] inside carriers’ bodies,” Defence Minister Naftali Bennett said in a statement.
It added that Mr Bennett visited the IIBR on Monday where he was briefed “on a significant breakthrough in finding an antidote for the coronavirus”.
It quoted IIBR Director Shmuel Shapira as saying that the antibody formula was being patented, after which an international manufacturer would be sought to mass-produce it.
The IIBR has been leading Israeli efforts to develop a treatment and vaccine for the coronavirus, including the testing of blood from those who recovered from Covid-19, the respiratory disease caused by the virus.