AZD7442: A cocktail of antibodies to fight Covid-19

Swedish-British drug giant AstraZeneca is moving an antibody combination developed for Covid-19 treatment into late-stage human trials. The firm has also received around $486 million from the US government for the development and supply of this combination.

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Key-Points

AZD7442, a similar class of the drug cocktail used to treat US President Donald Trump recently, is a combination of two long-acting monoclonal antibodies (LAAB).

AstraZeneca developed it using its proprietary technology with the aim of preventing Covid-19 infection for a long duration.

LAABs mimic natural antibodies, and a combination of LAABs could be “complementary” to vaccines as a prophylactic agent, according to AstraZeneca. This means it could either be used on people for whom a vaccine may not be appropriate or it could be given as added protection for those at high-risk.