Israel Claims Potential COVID-19 Treatment
By Stefan J. Bos, Special Correspondent Worthy News
(Worthy News) – Israel says its leading biological research laboratory has made a “significant breakthrough” toward a possible treatment for the COVID-19 pandemic.
The “monoclonal neutralizing antibody” was developed at the Israel Institute for Biological Research (IIBR), Defence Minister Naftali Bennett announced in a statement. The treatment “can neutralize it [the disease-causing coronavirus] inside carriers’ bodies,” he explained.
Bennett said he visited the IIBR this week and was briefed “on a significant breakthrough in finding an antidote for the coronavirus.”
The Defense Ministry-run IIBR claimed it was the world’s first institution with a possible treatment “lacking additional proteins that can cause complications for patients.”
IIBR Director Shmuel Shapira added that the antibody formula was being patented, after which an international manufacturer would be sought to mass-produce it.
But it was not immediately clear how much treatment would cost and whether it would be prohibitively expensive for millions of impoverished people suffering from the disease.
And, the IIBR suggested cautioned that medication was still at least several months away. Earlier this week, world leaders and other donors pledged some $8 billion to find a vaccine against COVID-19.
Israel has over 16,000 confirmed coronavirus infections with some 240 related deaths. Globally, millions of people have been infected, and about 260,000 people died of a coronavirus-related cause, according to health officials.
For most people, the new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough, that clear up in two to three weeks. But officials warn that especially older adults and people with existing health problems can suffer more severe illness, including pneumonia and death. However, the majority of people recover.
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