Chilean university sold its discovery of alpaca antibodies against COVID-19

Scientists around the world are studying how the immune system of camels can be beneficial in the fight against the coronavirus, because they produce a type of antibody that is simpler and more efficient at recognizing the surface of viruses and bacteria.

Recently the Southern University of Chile (UACH), who found neutralizing antibodies against the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus in alpacas, signed a commercial license agreement for the discovery with the German company NanoTag Biotechnologies to authorize its sale and distribution to the scientific community. In this way, Alpaca antibodies will be used in international research after showing their effectiveness against the virus.

“This antibody was ultimately licensed to a company expert in the production and marketing of nanobodies to make it available to the scientific community and for sale in the United States, Europe and Asia “, explained the head of the investigation, the doctor Alejandro Rojas, according to a press release from UACH.

the W25 antibody, identified in the alpaca Buddha in April 2020 by the UACH medical biotechnology laboratory, located in the south of the city of Valdivia, “It is one of the best neutralizers that exist in the world for various variants, very stable to fogging and to extreme temperature conditions”, ensured the establishment.

“We have generated a family of antibodies that are able to bind in an extraordinary way to the external protein of the SARS-CoV-2 virus known as Peak”, Tenuous Rojas.

As noted by the Doctor of Biochemistry, “Alpacas have antibodies which are very simple and which allow us to extract genetic information and then produce it in our laboratory in a synthetic and unlimited way. Therefore, this technology was used by our laboratory, from the start, for the fight against emerging viruses, both on the diagnostic side, and today also in the tools that we intend to develop in the therapeutic field.

Currently, these antibodies have been modified, can be found in all colors, they have also been changed to be able to be linked to enzymatic activity and are used, for example, to be able to detect the virus in autopsies of patients. Like that too they can be modified to be able to enrich the virus and to purify it or to detect it in a more sensitive way ”.

The specialist was particularly grateful for the support of the Transfer and Licensing Office (OTL) of the UACH. “The OTL accompanied us throughout the process, both in the generation of intellectual property, as well as with the necessary documents to be able to generate an alliance with the German company. We hope that this collaboration can continue to function because we have many other antibodies that we would also like, in the future, to make available to the scientific community around the world ”.

However, there is still a long way to go, and is Millionaire resources are lacking to move towards clinical trials that allow the use of this technology in the treatment of patients with COVID-19.

The lack of funding is not new, since Following the initial results, the researchers requested resources from the Chilean state to continue their investigations, but after repeated refusals it was determined sell the license to find other alternatives.

The pandemic has already caused the deaths of more than 30,000 people, considering only cases confirmed by the Ministry of Health. The most populous region of the country, with about 8 million inhabitants and housing the capital, is under total containment due to the advance of the virus.

The country, whose objective is vaccinate 15 of its 19 million inhabitants, Yes immunized 59% of the population with two doses Yes 76.6% with a. Next week, inoculation of children aged 12 to 17 with underlying illnesses will begin.

With information from the EFE

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