London: The new variant of Coronavirus, Omicron, has stirred the world. This variant is getting mutated every day. Due to which the concern has increased. Meanwhile, there is also relief news. A British scientist has made a big claim about the Omicron variant. Scientist says that the drug Sotrovimab is effective on every mutation of Omicron. The drug has been developed by GlaxoSmithKline in collaboration with US partner Vir (VIR) Biotechnology. Now this drug is being said to be effective against Omicron.
GlaxoSmithKline claimed in a statement that it is a monoclonal antibody. It is said to be based on human’s natural antibodies. Therefore, its effectiveness is more than other medicines. However, so far no medical journal has published anything about this medicine.
By the way, the company is saying so much that the rate of hospitalization can be reduced somewhat with the dosage of the drug Sotrovimab. It is being told that with this medicine the rate of hospitalization can be reduced by at least 79 percent. Due to this drug, the virus is not able to enter the human cell.
This study has been posted on the preprint server biorxiv. However, the study shares data based on preliminary laboratory tests and has not yet been fully reviewed. According to the company, the study demonstrated that sotrovimab retains activity against dominant mutants of the new Omicron SARS-CoV-2 variant (b.1.1.529). The companies are now completing in vitro pseudo-virus testing to confirm the inactivating activity of sotrovimab against a combination of all Omicron mutations, with the intention of providing an update by the end of 2021.
Developed by GSK and Vir Biotechnology, Sotrovimab is a single dose antibody, and the drug works by binding to the spike protein on the outer shell of the coronavirus. This prevents the virus from entering the human cell. The drug, marketed as Jevudy, is recommended to be administered within five days of the onset of symptoms of COVID-19.
It has shown that it is effective for people who do not require oxygen supplementation and are at risk of developing severe COVID infections. Sotrovimab has also been granted conditional marketing authorization by the UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) for the treatment of acute COVID-19 infection in symptomatic adults and adolescents (12 years of age and older). Conditional marketing authorization includes England, Scotland, and Wales.
