How llama will save the world from COVID-19

When the researchers struggle to find the cure of the deadly coronavirus, there has been a breakthrough in the past few days, according to US and Belgian scientists who have identified a particle that can block the virus. These particles are not any super vaccines but….

Antibodies from a llama in Belgium could provide treatment against the coronavirus, which has infected nearly 4 million people and left more than 250,000 dead. 

Scientists in the United States and Belgium have published a paper on their findings which is under peer-review. The new treatment may be effective even if Covid-19 mutates.

What is llama?

They are actually are the camel's hippie cousins, cute looking animals from South America, They are a common farm animal which is used for their wool and meat.

They are known for their social behaviour as they can get along with all the fellow animals at the farm, being its herd of sheep, brood of hens or any herd of cattle.

Why Llama of all the options?

The llama produces two types of antibodies, one similar to human antibodies and the other which are very small antibodies called "Nanobodies".

Nanobodies are one of the interests of the scientists as they have a single piece of protein that binds to the virus, which makes it easier for them to work with and engineer new drugs out of it.

 Professor Callewaert told RFI that "The nanobodies - reproduced in labs - can be connected to human antibodies enabling the new drugs to function correctly in the human body."

The nanobodies can be nebulized and used in an inhaler.

“That makes them potentially really interesting as a drug for a respiratory pathogen because you’re delivering it right to the site of infection,” said Daniel Wrapp, a graduate student in McLellan’s lab.

What was the experiment?

Scientists have turned to Winter, a dark brown Llama, form Belgium and was used to develop treatments for the SARS and MERS viruses back when she was nine months old. 

Winter, now 4 years old, was injected with spike proteins form the new coronavirus. After six weeks, scientists took a blood sample from Winter and found that her antibodies appeared to neutralize COVID - 19 a first for any living creature.

According to scientists, all the possible measures are being taken to implement this as a powerful method to tackle COVID - 19. The recent resources have told that this plan will be fully in action by the end of 2020.