Magic bullet hopes for deadly viruses
Friday July 9th, 2010
Single "magic bullet" treatments may be developed to treat deadly strains of flu and HIV, it was announced last night.
A monoclonal antibody seems to work against both bird flu and swine flu, according to a report in the journal PLoS Pathogens.
The antibody, known as AO6, has been shown to work in studies on laboratory mice, scientists said.
They said it had an "extended breadth of activity against multiple, genetically distinct strains".
The antibody is said to work by targeting a region that is common to all flu viruses.
The research has shown it works against H5N1 bird flu and H1N1 swine flu, the researchers, from Sea Lane Biotechnologies, said.
Researcher Michael Horowitz said: "While the study was limited to mice, the activity is reflective of the potential benefit to humans.
"Anti-influenza antibody therapeutics could help to fill the current gap in the existing arsenal of treatments against influenza and could, one day, help to contain a deadly pandemic."
Meanwhile US scientists said they had found two human antibodies that could combat more than 90 per cent of known strains of the AIDS virus, HIV.
The research, published in Science, was carried out by the US government Vaccine Research Center.
The discovery could be used to develop vaccines or treatments.
Researcher Dr John Mascola said: "The antibodies attach to a virtually unchanging part of the virus, and this explains why they can neutralise such an extraordinary range of HIV strains."
* A second study last night warned of the risk that swine flu posed to transplant patients.
Researchers said patients treated with anti-viral drugs within 48 hours of diagnose fared much better than others - and were one third as likely to need intensive care.
Deepali Kumar from the University of Alberta in Canada reports his findings in The Lancet Infectious Diseases. Some 237 cases of adult and child transplant patients who were infected were studied.
PLoS Pathog 6(7):e1000990. doi:10.1371/journal.ppat.1000990
Science. DOI: 10.1126/science.1187659 (2010).
Tags: Flu & Viruses | North America | Pharmaceuticals | Respiratory | World Health
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