Intranasal treatments such as antibodies or small-molecule antivirals could stop COVID-19 before it infects enough cells to lead to disease that's even deadly.
As specified in a Scientific American report, COVID-19 is recognized with impelling clinical innovation. However, for an illness that appears to begin in the noses of people, none of the current vaccines or drugs are "delivered intranasally."
Destroying the virus before it moves into the lower airways could stop severe illness. Essentially, an intranasal vaccine could do this by stimulating the immune system in the mucus of the noses.
For example, healthcare workers who have been vaccinated could take a puff of the virus-killing nasal spray following exposure to shield against breakthrough infection.
Possible Benefits of Nasal Spray That Pills Injectables Don't Have
According to a similar Massachusetts Digital News report, drug manufacturers default to injectable vaccines and therapeutics for several reasons.
The muscles have lots of blood vessels and therefore, injections in arms are probably the most rapid way to get immune-stimulating vaccines, as well as therapeutic antibodies into the bloodstream. From there, such muscles can work their way to the respiratory system, as well as other systems, where the COVID-19 virus is doing its dirty job.
In a similar way, pills get absorbed into the circulation rapidly. To make the present drugs or vaccines work intranasally, reformulation and retesting may be needed. Nevertheless, a nasal spray might have benefits that do not exist in pills and injectables and that's direct delivery to the infection's earliest site.
Intranasals Now in Development
A number of nasal vaccines are currently undergoing clinical trials. The better news is that intranasals for the prevention and treatment of COVID-19 are also currently in development.
For instance, a scientist from the University of Houston has shown animal models of coronavirus that an intranasal antibody spray appears to lessen the viral load.
In a similar report, the US Wall Post specified that the biotech firm this researcher co-founded is working toward clinical trials.
Depending on how these approaches perform, there may be new tools for living in the middle of this prevalent illness.
Earlier Nasal Spray Development
Earlier in 2020, Science Times reported that an international team of researchers developed a nasal spray that would stop the absorption of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
If the spray, described by the researchers as "durable and non-toxic," is proven safe for humans, a new mechanism for combatting pandemic may be provided. Spraying up the nose each day is going to work like a vaccine, they elaborated.
According to the chairman of immunology at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public health, Dr. Arturo Casadevall who was not part of the study, having something new that's working against COVID-19 "is exciting." He added he could imagine the nasal spray as being "part of the asternal."
A Columbia pediatrician and microbiologist and co-author of the report, Dr. Anne Moscona said that to perform clinical research in humans, their team would need additional funds. He continued, they had already applied for a product potent.
Moscona wished then that Columbia University would approach Operation Warp Pace of the federal government major pharmaceutical company in the quest for innovative methods to combat COVID-19.
Related information about nasal spray against COVID-19 is shown on WION's YouTube video below:
Check out more news and information on COVID-19 in Science Times.
