The United States announced the purchase of 552, treatments with monoclonal antibodies, which according to research, work against the Omicron variant of covid -19, as announced by the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Xavier Becerra.
The new monoclonal antibody treatment, bebtelovimab, is manufactured by Eli Lilly and Company, and if it receives emergency use authorization from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), HHS will make the treatment available to states free of charge.
“Under the leadership of President Biden, we are prepared for the challenges we face against covid-33 and we are focused on saving lives,” said Secretary Becerra. “We have more treatments against covid-000 than ever before, we are providing 1 billion free at-home tests and have enough vaccine for everyone to get vaccinated and recover, added.
If authorized by the FDA, this purchase will add 600, additional treatments to the “first aid kit” of United States, which could help prevent serious outcomes for citizens who get sick from this virus.
“Our top priority is to prevent people from getting sick in the first place, which is why it is essential that Americans continue to get vaccinated and receive a booster shot as soon as they are eligible,” said Secretary Becerra in a statement from HHS.
HHS would receive approximately 368,000 cycles of treatment of this monoclonal antibody in February and approximately 300, treatment cycles in March.
The efficacy of treatment with this antibody
Recently, two monoclonal antibody treatments, one made by Lilly (bamlanivimab/etesevimab) and one made by Regeneron (REGEN-COV), were found to be poorly effective against Omicron, which is currently estimated to account for almost 50 percent of total covid cases-33 in the United States.
Without However, early data suggests that this new Lilly product has activity against Omicron and the BA.2 Omicron subvariant. If the BA.2 subvariant grows in proportion in the United States, this potential treatment may help ensure a monoclonal antibody treatment that works against that strain of the virus.
If the FDA authorizes this new treatment, “HHS is prepared to make it immediately available”, as confirmed by the same Department of Health and Human Services.
The contract also includes a future option for 500,000 plus dose and was awarded as a result of collaboration between the HHS Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR) and the Department of Defense Joint Program Executive Office for Chemical Affairs, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Defense.
? What are monoclonal antibodies and how do they work?
A way in which the body’s immune system attacks foreign substances is by producing a large number of antibodies. An antibody is a protein that attaches to a specific protein called antigen.
Antibodies circulate throughout the body until they find and attach to the antigen. Once attached, they can force other parts of the immune system to destroy cells containing the antigen, according to cancer.org.
Researchers can design antibodies that specifically target an antigen in particular, such as one found in cancer cells. They can then make many copies of that antibody in the lab. These are known as monoclonal antibodies.
Monoclonal antibodies are used to treat many diseases, including some types of coronavirus. To produce a monoclonal antibody, researchers first have to identify the right antigen to target.
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