This week I would like to expand on vaccine development since a lot of the return to normal lifestyle depends on it. The COVID-19 caused by the SARS-CoV-2 has taken a very heavy toll on human health and the global economy, so it is very important that a treatment is found very quickly. However, many pilot studies have begun to test a potential form of the vaccine. A team led by Chuan Qin at the Peking Union Medical College in Beijing has injected rhesus macaques with an inactive form of the vaccine. The inactivated SARS-CoV-2 virus vaccine candidate is the PiCoVacc. It induces the specific neutralizing antibodies in mice, rats, and non-human primates. Based on this team, the eight monkeys were initially exposed to the virus. They saw that the monkeys that received a high dose of the vaccine did not have any indication of the virus seven days after the exposure. For the monkeys that received a lower dose, they did have some corona virus present, but it was much less than the non-vaccinated animals. Although this is far from perfection, this gives us some hope that the vaccine can be used on humans.
On the other hand, the University of Minnesota has launched a clinical trial that is studying to see if Losartan can be used to treat COVID-19 patients. Losartan is a generic blood pressure medication and is used to treat hypertensive patients. This trial wants to see if Losartan can prevent the multi-organ failure in the hospitalized COVID-19 patients. It is believed that Losartan will block the receptor, angiotensin- converting enzyme 2 receptor, which is what SARS- CoV-2 virus binds to. Therefore, there is hope that this would prevent the virus from entering the cells. However, another possible outcome is that this will result in an actual increase in the receptors which will allow the virus to infiltrate the body at a rapid pace.
As you can see, there are multiple approaches being taken to find a treatment to COVID-19. However, this does not necessarily mean that the ideal treatment will be found rapidly. There are a lot of possible side effects, ethical concerns, and financial concerns that need to be taken into account when trying to find a potential treatment.
- By: Aashka Suvarnakar