World first Covid antiviral therapy

[The_King]

Queensland researchers and a US team have developed an antiviral therapy that has killed off the Covid-19 viral load in infected mice by 99.9 per cent.

Lead researcher Professor Nigel McMillan, from Griffith University, called it a seek and destroy mission where the therapy genetically targeted the potentially deadly virus.

The international team of scientists from the Menzies Health Institute Queensland and the US research institute City of Hope began their collaborative research last April.

They used a next-generation viral approach using gene-silencing RNA technology to attack the virus genome directly, which stops the virus spreading.

"It causes the genome to be destroyed and the virus can't grow anymore — so we inject the nanoparticles and they go and find the virus and destroy it just like a heat-seeking missile," Professor McMillan said.

Professor McMillan said traditional antivirals like zanamivir and remdesivir reduced symptoms and helped people recover earlier.

"Where this therapy actually stops the virus replicating, so the body can repair itself and the recovery will be much quicker," he said.

He said the treatment could be available as early as 2023, depending on the outcomes of the next phase of clinical trials.

"I guess we do have to keep in mind that we do need clinical trials in humans and phase one, two and three to show that it is actually effective in doing what we hope it will do and that is fighting this virus.

 

 

 

[The_King]

us and aussie create it. china dont like them