(ECNS) – China has developed a variety of laboratory-level therapeutic antibodies and polypeptide drugs for the treatment of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), the Beijing News reported on Tuesday.
Shi Yi, a researcher with the Beijing Institutes of Life Science under the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), said a group of researchers led by Gao Fu, a CAS academician, began studies on MERS antibodies in 2013. They have discovered the mechanisms under which the MERS virus invades the host cell, he said.
Shi also said the therapeutic antibodies have shown initial effects on mice in laboratory experiments. Clinical trials will be the next step, while mass production of the antibodies will require pharmaceutical companies to ensure certain production standards.
On Friday, a man from the Republic of Korea tested positive for MERS in the southern province of Guangdong.
Authorities upped the number of people who had close contact with the man to 77 on Sunday. Of them, 67 have been quarantined.
The patient is in a Huizhou City hospital and remains feverish, while none of the others in quarantine are showing any symptoms, according to authorities.
