Covid-19: 65-yr-old is first to get antibody cocktail therapy

The monoclonal antibodies attach with the spike protein of the Sars-CoV-2 virus that causes Covid-19 and prevent the entry of the virus into the human cell.

A 65-year-old Covid-19 patient received an antibody cocktail at Delhi’s Indraprastha Apollo hospital on Thursday, becoming the first person in the city to have been treated using the therapy.

It uses a cocktail of two monoclonal antibodies -- laboratory-made proteins that mimic the body’s immune cells -- called casirivimab and imdevimab marketed by Roche. (Reuters file photo)

It uses a cocktail of two monoclonal antibodies -- laboratory-made proteins that mimic the body’s immune cells -- called casirivimab and imdevimab marketed by Roche. The monoclonal antibodies attach with the spike protein of the Sars-CoV-2 virus that causes Covid-19 and prevent the entry of the virus into the human cell.

The therapy is administered to those at high risk of developing severe disease before the disease progresses on from mild or moderate category with no need for oxygen support. “The treatment is administered so that those at a high risk of developing severe disease and of mortality do not progress to that stage,” said Dr Rajesh Chawala of Indraprastha Apollo hospital.

The therapy should not be administered to those who have a history of allergies or those who are dependent on oxygen because of other lung diseases such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.