It is human nature to always be on the lookout for better things, but that barely makes the process any easier. You see, given the continuous theme in play here, you become more and more likely to run out of ideas after a time, and that can get you stuck in the worst possible way. Hence, you’ll often find human beings seeking out ideas from external sources. While this method hasn’t worked out on every single occasion, it has delivered some groundbreaking results over the years, with technology being the biggest of them all. Technology gets to dominate such discussions, because so far, it’s the only man-made creation that practically changed our identity. By doing so, it ushered into a time where every aspect of human life was more straightforward than it has ever been, and if we are to validate the same through an example, we’ll find few as clear cut as what happened within the medical sector. Technology’s link-up with healthcare wasn’t something that had everyone chuffed up from the get-go, but once the results began to pour in, our perception about it changed big time. This altered dynamic has only grown stronger since then. In fact, a recently-developed medtech device is another clear representation of the said growth.
The researching team at University of British Columbia has successfully developed a nasal spray, which can block SARS-CoV-2 from entering the nasal cavity cells. According to certain reports, the spray uses a drug molecule called N-0385 to inhibit the enzyme that is usually responsible for viral entry into cells. The researching team has tested it against four different viral variants thus far, alongside various cell types, and their verdict gives it a clear chance against multiple vectors, including the highly-resistant Omicron variant. Beyond prevention, the spray can also be used to treat such infections. This was discovered during an experiment where the researchers tested the spray in a mouse model of severe Covid 19. As per some available details, all the mice that were treated with the spray ended up surviving. On the other hand, though, only 20% of the untreated ones would go on to live.
“The compound is unique because it blocks entry at the cell surface, without having to get into the cell, which prevents it from causing any detectable cell damage,” said Andrea Olmstead, a researcher involved in the study. “As well, it’s highly potent, in that it needs only a tiny amount to work very effectively. “Once approved, this compound could be used in combination with already available drugs that inhibit the virus’ replication, to provide a stronger defense against COVID-19 variants of concern.”
