A coronavirus cure? Netflix's 'Pandemic' star thinks his team found one
Dr. Jacob Glanville believes Dr. Anthony Fauci, White House should consider antibodies over a vaccine
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California company Distributed Bio believes it has engineered a possible antibody treatment for coronavirus.
"I'm happy to report that we succeeded," Dr. Jacob Glanville told FOX Business' Liz Claman on Monday.
Glanville referenced the microscopic view of coronavirus, pointing to the spikes on the outside of the microbe.
This transmission electron microscope image shows SARS-CoV-2, also known as novel coronavirus, the virus that causes COVID-19. The spikes on the outer edge of the virus particles give coronaviruses their name, crown-like. NIAID-RML/Handout via REUTER
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"We've generated a set of super-potent antibodies that lock onto those spikes, so the virus is no longer infectious," Glanville explained during "The Claman Countdown."
Glanville pushed his preference over an antibody treatment over a vaccine because a vaccine takes so long to develop and test.
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"We can't wait and disrupt our economy and our lives for that long," Glanville insisted. "An antibody treatment is much faster. We can't wait until 2020 once we start our economy."
The doctor believes the sooner an antibody treatment can be produced, the sooner doctors and patients can lower their risk of death.
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Glanville, who is well known from his appearance on Netflix's docuseries "Pandemic," first announced the possibility of this on April 1.
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The White House Coronavirus Task Force's Dr. Anthony Fauci didn't appear directly aware of Glanville's specific research when Fox News' John Roberts asked last week.
"I don't know specifically this individual, what they're doing, but I can tell you there's a lot of activity that is centered around a passive transfer of antibodies in the form of convalescent plasma," Fauci responded.
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Fauci went on to explain the idea behind Glanville's research
"It's based on the same principle of if you have a protective antibody passive transfer that could provide not only protection prophylactically but also treatment," Fauci expounded. "This is an old concept. In fact, immunology ... was born decades and decades and decades ago with the concept of giving passive transfer of serum to an individual to protect them from an infection."
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Because of this history, Fauci said he "wouldn't be surprised if he and a number of other people are pursuing this," calling it "the right thing to do."
Glanville was delighted Fauci seemed behind his research.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, appears at the White House in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon File)
"I want to thank Dr. Fauci," Dr. Glanville said. "He's working really hard to try to protect all our lives. I would strongly encourage Fauci and his team to consider antibodies as a critical part of solving this problem."
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Glanville is hopeful his lab will be able to begin releasing the drug by September.
"We're doing everything we can to fast-track that, and we're having active discussions with basically anyone we can talk to," Glanville said.
While he thinks it's possible to fast-track the development, Glanville admitted he didn't want to give anyone false hope for a faster timeline.