A nasal spray therapy developed in llamas, which has been shown to prevent and treat Covid-19, is now moving to clinical trials in humans.

Researchers from the Rosalind Franklin Institute, UK, injected one llama with a small portion of the SARS-CoV-2 virus and then collected nanobodies, a small form of antibodies, to use in a nasal spray.

A preclinical study using Syrian hamsters – which are infected naturally by Covid-19 – showed that the nasal spray could reverse the symptoms of Covid-19, with the hamsters recovering completely within six days.

Although more trials, including clinical trials in humans, are necessary, Public Health England said the spray was among the “most effective SARS-CoV-2 neutralising agents tested”.

See also previous Digest stories on Dutch and Estonian nasal spray studies.