Convalescent plasma as possible therapy against COVID-19
Emil von Behring discovered serum therapy. In 1901, he received the
noble prize award for his work use in the treatment serum diphtheria
antitoxin.16 By that time, he was widely known as a
savior of children, because as diphtheria was the major cause of child
death. Scientific studies indicated that SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) has a
genome size of ~30 kilobases, like other coronaviruses,
encodes for multiple structural and non-structural proteins. The
structural proteins include the spike (S) protein, the envelope (E)
protein, the membrane (M) protein, and the nucleocapsid (N) protein. A
set of B cell and T cell epitopes derived from the spike (S) and
nucleocapsid (N) proteins were identified this might be helpful for
effective antibody production and vaccine design against
COVID-19.17 SARS-CoV-2 and SARS-CoV-1 shared a common
human host-cell receptor protein, angiotensin converting enzyme 2
(ACE2).18 In 2009, intensive care unit recruited H1N1
influenza virus infected patients shown that after treatment with
convalescent plasma reduced respiratory tract viral load, serum cytokine
response, and mortality.19 The convalescent serum
plasma therapy experience of its efficacy and safety usage was reported
from previously outbake of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus
(MERS-CoV).20 The convalescent plasma therapy has been
used for the treatment SARS-CoV-1 patients in 2003 at Hong Kong which
reported as good outcome.21
In Taiwan, during 2003 SARS-CoV-1 outbreak, the convalescent plasma
taken from O blood type fully recovered patients for the infected
healthcare worker resulted in zero viral load after 24 h of transfusion.
Moreover, after convalescent plasma therapy one infected pregnant
healthcare worker deliver healthy newborn baby with positive
anti-SARS-CoV1 IgG. Indicated that the possibility of passive immunity
transfer of anti-SARS-CoV-1 antibody from the mother to the
newborn.22
Recently, it has been reported that discharged patients in China and
elsewhere were 23 testing positive after recovering. The situation was
as unclear. Animal model based study was carrier out to reveals the
reinfection and relapse of COVID-19. After treatment with convalescent
plasma the pre-infected monkey shown neither viral loads in
nasopharyngeal and anal swabs along timeline nor viral replication in
all primary tissue compartments at 5 days
post-reinfection.23 Generally, the viremia peaks most
probably is high in the first week of the viral infection. Therefore,
providing the convalescent plasma as early as the viral infection would
make it more effective. 24,25
At China where the epicenter of COVID-19, at currently in 2020
Convalescent plasma therapy has been used as a potential therapy for
SARS-CoV-2 infected sever patients. In chia this able to cure 7 patients
out of 10 patients. The procedure, important, profession and all
technical details experiences shared from China, are in the reference
.24