AstraZeneca begins COVID-19 dual-use antibody drug trial in UK

People queue to be tested at a temporary testing centre for the novel coronavirus in the Spanish Basque city of Gernika, on Tuesday. Pic/AFP

UK-headquartered biopharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca on Tuesday announced the start of clinical trials for an antibody drug which offers dual hope to treat and prevent COVID-19. The drug known as AZD7442 has the potential to be given as a preventative option for people exposed to the Coronavirus and to treat and prevent disease progression in patients already infected by the deadly virus.

"This trial is an important milestone in the development of our monoclonal antibody combination to prevent or treat COVID-19," said Mene Pangalos, Executive Vice President, BioPharmaceuticals R&D, at AstraZeneca.

"This combination of antibodies, coupled to our proprietary half-life extension technology, has the potential to improve both the effectiveness and durability of use in addition to reducing the likelihood of viral resistance," said Pangalos.

S Korea shuts school in Seoul South Korea is closing schools and switching back to remote learning in the greater capital area as the country counted its 12th straight day of triple-digit daily increases in Coronavirus cases.

Education Minister Yoo Eun-hae on Tuesday said that at least 193 students and teachers were found infected over the past two weeks in the Seoul metropolitan region, where a viral surge has threatened to erase the country's hard-won epidemiological gains.

South Korea's Centres for Disease Control and Prevention reported 280 newly confirmed cases of COVID-19, pushing the 12-day total to 3,175. The country's caseload is now at 17,945, including 310 deaths. First COVID reinfection case University of Hong Kong scientists claim to have the first evidence of someone being reinfected with the virus that causes COVID-19.

Genetic tests revealed that a 33-year-old man returning to Hong Kong from a trip to Spain in mid-August had a different strain of the Coronavirus than the one he'd previously been infected with in March, said Dr Kelvin Kai-Wang To, the microbiologist who led the work.

The man had mild symptoms the first time and none the second time; his more recent infection was detected through screening and testing at the Hong Kong airport. "It shows that some people do not have lifelong immunity to the virus if they've already had it," To said.

"We don't know how many people can get reinfected. There are probably more out there." Bali shut for foreigners till yr end The Indonesian island of Bali will not open to foreign tourists again this year, due to Coronavirus concerns.

Authorities of the popular holiday destination had earlier said foreign visitors would be allowed to return from next month. But the plan has been scrapped over concerns about Indonesia's mounting Covid-19 cases. The move has renewed worries about the impact on residents in an economy heavily dependent on tourism. Millions of foreigners fly to Bali each year in search of deserted beaches, terraced rice fields and sprawling Hindu temples.

"The situation in Indonesia is not conducive to allow international tourists to visit the country, including Bali," said the island's governor, Wayan Koster, in a recent statement.

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