Both the European Union and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), in the United States, have actually now approved particular antibody tests for COVID-19 What are these tests, and how can they be beneficial? Read our Special Feature to learn.
If you have actually been following the news about research into COVID-19 treatments, you may have seen points out of “antibody screening.”
But exactly what are antibody tests, how do they differ from similar-seeming tests– such as antigen tests– and are they of any usage?
In this Special Function, we pursue these questions and explain the possible function of antibody screening throughout the ongoing pandemic.
We also explain why antibody testing, though beneficial, is only one part of a worldwide effort required to decrease the unfavorable impact of SARS-CoV-2, the infection that causes COVID-19
First, what is antibody screening? It involves screening a sample of blood for tiny particles called antibodies that have “found out” to respond to a particular pathogen, such as a virus.
Antibodies find out to recognize and battle specific viruses through exposure to them.
This implies that if a physician discovers antibodies that react to a particular infection in a person’s blood, they can verify that the individual has actually overcome an infection of that virus.
By contrast, antigen tests, which generally rely on swabs from the nose or throat, show whether the person currently has the viral infection.
Antigens are molecular structures on the surface of infections. Their presence in a sample suggests that the infection is likewise present and active– and for that reason infectious.
In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, some scientists argue that deploying antibody tests more extensively in communities might ultimately assist ease the constraints put in place to slow the spread of the infection.
For example, Dr. Jenny Harries, the deputy chief medical officer for England, stated in a Euronews interview that “If we know how many people have actually already had [the new coronavirus], we will understand the proportion of the population that could still get it, and that offers us the idea to a number of things.”
Specifically, a much better understanding of how many individuals have actually recuperated from SARS-CoV-2 infection would make it possible for professionals to more accurately approximate the dynamic and rate of the virus’ spread. This would assist them create better techniques to safeguard the community and perhaps also enable more freedom of motion.
Meanwhile, antibody tests could play an additional function– verifying who certifies to donate convalescent plasma, a component of blood which contains antibodies.
Currently, scientists across the U.S. and in various European nations are evaluating making use of convalescent plasma therapy in the treatment of COVID-19
This treatment includes transfusing people who have COVID-19 with plasma from individuals who have actually currently recovered from the illness and who have for