Convalescent serum therapy for COVID-19: A 19th century remedy for a 21st century disease

• Published in: PLoS pathogens Vol. 16; no. 8; p. e1008735
• Main Authors: Montelongo-Jauregui, Daniel, Vila, Taissa, Sultan, Ahmed S, Jabra-Rizk, Mary Ann
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Public Library of Science 01-08-2020; Public Library of Science (PLoS)
• Subjects: Antibodies; Antibodies, Anti-Idiotypic - therapeutic use; Antigens; Betacoronavirus - immunology; Betacoronavirus - pathogenicity; Biology and Life Sciences; Care and treatment; Control; Convalescent plasma therapy; Coronavirus Infections - immunology; Coronavirus Infections - therapy; Coronavirus Infections - virology; Coronaviruses; COVID-19; Epidemics; Fever; Health services; History, 19th Century; History, 20th Century; History, 21st Century; Humans; Immune system; Immunization, Passive - history; Immunotherapy; Infections; Lymphocytes; Lymphocytes B; Measles; Mechanical ventilation; Medical research; Medical treatment; Medicine and Health Sciences; Methods; Middle East respiratory syndrome; Mortality; Mumps; Pandemics; Patient outcomes; Patients; Pearls; Pneumonia, Viral - immunology; Pneumonia, Viral - therapy; Pneumonia, Viral - virology; Public health; Respiratory diseases; Rheumatic fever; Risk; SARS-CoV-2; Scarlet fever; Severe acute respiratory syndrome; Signal processing; Therapy; United States; Vaccines; Varicella; Ventilation; Viral diseases; United States; Middle East; United States > US; Maryland; Baltimore Maryland
• ISSN: 1553-7374; 1553-7366; 1553-7374
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1008735

[...]because of the high number of patients with severe COVID-19 and the mainstay of current clinical treatment consisting of symptomatic management and mechanical ventilation, administering convalescent plasma for treatment purposes is currently being deployed [7–12]. [...]there are numerous examples throughout history in which convalescent serum was used with some degree of success to treat an array of diseases, including rheumatic fever [16], scarlet fever [17], mumps [18], measles [18, 19], chickenpox [18], and pneumococcal and meningococcal infections [20] (Fig 1). COVID-19, coronavirus disease 2019; MERS, Middle East respiratory syndrome; SARS, severe acute respiratory syndrome. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.ppat.1008735.g001 Buying time with the help of the convalescent The convalescent plasma therapeutic approach is based on the principle of passive antibody therapy, a short-term strategy whereby antibodies from the blood of someone who recovered from an infection can be administered to protect or treat another person [6, 21]. [...]a vaccine relies on the host immune cells (B lymphocytes specifically) to produce antibodies after antigen recognition and signal amplification by the immune system, a process that may take weeks [24]; on the other hand, in the case of passive antibody therapy, the process is expedited by providing a patient with immediate immunity when the premade antibodies are given. [...]for COVID-19 patients, the expedited approach could prove lifesaving.