What Is 'Antisera'? Know All About The ICMR Developed Antibody Treatment For COVID-19 From Horses

'Antisera' developed by ICMR is an antibody treatment against Coronavirus that was developed by injecting inactivated SARS-CoV-2 in horses.

(PTI Photo/Manvender Vashist)

The Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) has presented its nod for the conducting Phase-1 human clinical trial for an "antisera" developed by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) for the treatment of novel Coronavirus. News agency PTI quoted an ICMR official who said that "antisera" developed by ICMR in collaboration with a Hyderabad-based biopharmaceutical firm Biological E Ltd is an antibody treatment that was developed by injecting inactivated SARS-CoV-2 in horses and can be a potential treatment for COVID-19. "With Biological E Limited we have developed an horse 'antisera' and we have just got clearance for conducting clinical trials for that," said Balram Bhargava, the ICMR Director General. What is antisera? Antisera are blood serum high in antibodies against specific antigens and are injected in humans to help kickstart the immune system to fight specific infections. As per the latest updates, the 'antisera' is yet to undergo human clinical trials to establish safety and efficacy. According to the reports, the therapy works on the same pattern as plasma therapy. However, in this case, the blood plasma will be obtained from horses. The horses that were injected with SARS-CoV-2 and have now recovered from the viral infection have showed antibodies against the virus. Hence, they will be used for the treatment. The report added that the antibodies from horses, known as equine antisera, are quite common. The report further states that 10 healthy horses were immunised with inactivated SARS-CoV-2. Their plasma samples were tested after 21 days of immunisation.  The results of the plasma samples indicated presence of SARS-CoV-2 specific IgG antibodies as detected in ELISA with neutralising capacity.