The sudden arrival and devastating impact of the SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) pandemic spurred a rush of international research to identify effective ways to limit the spread of infection and reduced the associated morbidity and mortality of the virus.
Alongside the emerging vaccines that have been developed at accelerated speed, an arsenal of treatments to reduce the severity of symptoms, avoid hospitalisation and prevent progression to serious complications or death are being trialled. With some limited success, including the RECOVERY and PRINCIPAL trials at Oxford, attention is turning to neutralising monoclonal antibodies (mAbs), a new class of anti-viral treatment to combat the symptoms of COVID-19.