A newly discovered plant-based antiviral drug has proven to be quite effective against all COVID-19 variants, even the Delta strain, scientists claim.
While the emergence of each new COVID-19 variant poses a global health concern, the Delta variant in particular has been deemed one of the most contagious strains of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
A single dose of thapsigargin (TG) effectively blocks all single-variant infections and every co-infection, with an effectiveness rate of over 95 percent, scientists from the University of Nottingham have reported in a new study.
They deduced that TG can largely inhibit every single COVID-19 variant.
Of the three dominant COVID-19 variants (Alpha, Beta and Delta), the Delta strain showed the highest ability to multiply in cells, and was most able to spread directly to neighboring cells at an amplification rate (withing a 24-hour period) that was four times higher than the other two variants.
Co-infections with Alpha and Delta or Alpha and Beta conferred multiplication synergy, where total new virus output was greater than the sum of corresponding single-variant infections, according to a statement released by the university on Friday.
“Our new study has given us better insights into the dominance of the Delta variant. Even though we have shown that this variant is clearly the most infectious and promotes production of other variants in co-infections, we are pleased to have shown that TG is just as effective against all of them,” lead study author Professor Kin Chow Chang said in a statement.
“Together, these results point to the antiviral potential of TG as a post-exposure prophylactic and an active therapeutic agent,” he added
