Auravale Alpacas was pleased to be asked to be involved in the filming of 1/9/2020 A Current Affair article on “Alpacas offer hope in race to end COVID-19 pandemic with potential virus-busting treatment”
As the world waits for a corona virus vaccine, the scientific race to find a treatment is just as important.
Scientists in Melbourne have found an unlikely inspiration – alpacas.
Researchers from the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute have injected alpacas with fragments of the virus that causes COVID-19.
Antibody based therapies could fill a gap in the treatment of Covid 19. Alpaca antibodies are liked as they have a different way of stopping the virus from entering cells. No body knows why Alpacas make these special antibodies but there is speculation that these smaller antibodies can target proteins. The nanobodies inside an alpaca are uniquely small enough to fit into the spike protein of a Covid 19 particle. This process stops the virus spike protein from being able to interact with the alpaca cells, losing its ability to infect the animal. Researchers are now working to turn this discovery into a IV Covid 19 treatment for humans.
Link to the A Current Affair article
