Plant-made SARS-CoV-2 Antibody for COVID-19 Treatment
Author Information
Author(s): Steven W. de Taeye, Loïc Faye, Bertrand Morel, Angela I. Schriek, Jeffrey C. Umotoy, Meng Yuan, Natalia A. Kuzmina, Hannah L. Turner, Xueyong Zhu, Clemens Grünwald-Gruber, Meliawati Poniman, Judith A. Burger, Tom G. Caniels, Anne-Catherine Fitchette, Réjean Desgagnés, Virginie Stordeur, Lucie Mirande, Guillaume Beauverger, Godelieve de Bree, Gabriel Ozorowski, Andrew B. Ward, Ian A. Wilson, Alexander Bukreyev, Rogier W. Sanders, Louis-Philippe Vezina, Tim Beaumont, Marit J. van Gils, Véronique Gomord
Hypothesis
Can plant-produced antibodies provide a cost-effective alternative to traditional monoclonal antibody therapies for COVID-19?
Conclusion
Plant-produced antibodies demonstrated comparable efficacy to mammalian-produced antibodies in preventing SARS-CoV-2 infection in a hamster model.
Supporting Evidence
- Plant-produced antibodies showed similar neutralizing activity to those produced in mammalian cells.
- Three engineering techniques were used to enhance the antibodies' effectiveness.
- Plant expression systems can significantly reduce production costs compared to traditional methods.
Takeaway
Scientists made antibodies in plants to help fight COVID-19, and they worked just as well as those made in labs.
Methodology
The study involved expressing, producing, and purifying the COVA2-15 antibody in plants, followed by testing its neutralization capacity and in vivo efficacy in a hamster model.
Limitations
The study did not focus on increasing total yield of antibodies, which may limit the scalability of the production process.
Participant Demographics
Female golden Syrian hamsters aged 6-7 weeks were used for in vivo testing.
Statistical Information
P-Value
p<0.01
Statistical Significance
p<0.01
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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