Nanobodies: an unexplored opportunity to combat COVID-19

Abstract

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a highly contagious disease caused by severe acute respiratory coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). This virus is capable of human-to-human transmission, and is spreading rapidly round the globe, with markedly high fatality rates. Unfortunately, there are neither vaccines nor specific therapies available to combat it, and the developments of such approaches depend on pursuing multiple avenues in biomedical science. Accordingly, in this paper we highlight one such avenue—nanobodies—for potential utility in therapeutic and diagnostic interventions to combat COVID-19. Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.