Chinese Government donates a covid-19 protein valued in $134,000

Published Friday, June 12, 2020

Chinese Government donates a covid-19 protein valued in $134,000

By the A.M. Costa Rica staff

The Chinese government, through the Embassy in Costa Rica, donated 50 milligrams of a synthetic viral SARS-CoV-2 protein to the Clodomiro Picado Research Institute of the University of Costa Rica.

According to Costa Rican scientists, this protein corresponds to the portion of the virus that infects the cells of the respiratory system.

The protein was produced by the biotech company Sanyou Biopharmaceuticals, in Shanghai, valued at $134,000, said the University in its statement.

"My best wishes for the success of the Institute project," said Tang Heng, the Chinese ambassador in Costa Rica. "We are ready to work with Costa Rica to protect together with the life and health of all the countries of the world.”

The protein is used in the process of creating the treatment that the institute is developing with immunized horses.

The goal of Costa Rican scientists is to create a drug against covid-19. The advances in the studies have made it possible for antibodies to be detected in the plasma of animals.

This is the second protein that the institute has obtained to develop research in the treatment of covid-19.

In April, the National Council for Scientific and Technological Research donated $60,360 to buy 50 mg of another synthetic protein from SARS-VOC-2 purchased from a UK biotech company located in Oxford.

According to Alberto Alape-Girón, director of the institute, the immune response of horses is stronger than plasma from covid-19 recovered patients.

The University said they expect the production of synthetic viral proteins from covid-19 in the country could become a reality.

Last week, the Government publicly declared national interest in the investigations to develop plasma for the treatment of patients infected with covid-19.

Scientists at the Clodomiro Picado Research Institute and Social Security are developing two types of plasma treatment obtained from patients recovered from covid-19.

According to the government, the decree allows both public and private sector agencies, non-governmental organizations and international organizations to contribute material, economic and human resources for the successful conduct of the investigations.

The two research projects that are being developed in the country are to produce and validate the therapeutic effectiveness of two treatments with antibodies against the virus.

The method developed by Social Security is based on human antibodies purified from the plasma of convalescent patients. Four patients hospitalized in the Specialized Patient Care Center with covid-19, known as the Covid Hospital, have already received plasma from recovered patients therapy, announced the Social Security.

The Institute's research is using antibodies that are purified and obtained from the plasma of horses immunized with viral proteins.

The Institute estimates that the first batch of human immunoglobulins will be ready by the end of this month.

The first batch of equine plasma is also projected to be ready in late July. This treatment is obtained from immunized horses having already received two injections of the viral proteins.

According to the Ministry of Security report, by Thursday, 722 patients have recovered from covid-19. And authorities confirmed that 56 donors had been treated as of Monday, which allowed them to collect 84 units of 200 milliliters each.

Recovered patients have the option to refuse to donate their blood. Those that donate their blood undergo a pre-approval process to be sure that their blood meets the requirements to be donated.

Costa Rican scientists are running against time due to the spike in covid-19 infections in the country.

The Health Ministry reported on Thursday that there was an increase of 77 new active cases bringing the total to 804 active cases or those who currently have the virus in the country.

Authorities provided the following statistics of the evolution of the virus in the country:

• Of the 1,538 infected since the first case was detected in March, 722 coronavirus patients have fully recovered. That is equal to 45% of total recovered patients.

• The ages of those infected range from a three-month-old baby to 92-years-old, with an average age of 35.

• 20 patients are being treated in public hospitals, where 17 are in recovery rooms and 3 have been reported in an Intensive Care Unit, ICU, with delicate health conditions. Most of the infected patients are quarantined in their homes.

• 388 foreigners infected, of these 47% entered the country illegally.

• 21,275 people have been ruled out.

• 30,779 medical covid-19 tests have been made.

• 12 deaths have been reported from patients infected with covid-19 since March, three women and nine men.

The updated number of total patients in each district can be reached at the National Distance Education University on its Covid-19 Mapp.

As of Thursday night, the pandemic has killed 421,456 patients worldwide, according to recent statistics reported by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University.

------------------------------------
Should the government finance the investigation of the institute to speed the process to create the covid-19 treatment? We would like to know your thoughts on this story. Send your comments to news@amcostarica.com