Scientists have identified a human antibody that they say may potentially prevent or limit SARS-CoV-2 infection that causes Covid-19 disease.

The researchers from the University of Massachusetts Medical School (UMMS) in the US discovered and characterised a cross-reactive human monoclonal antibody (MAB) to SARS-CoV-2 spike proteins which blocks ACE2 receptor binding on the mucosal tissue of the respiratory tract.

The origins of this rapid and important discovery go back 16 years, when the researchers at UMMS developed an IgG monoclonal antibody that was effective against a similar virus, SARS, according to the study published in the journal Nature Communications.

This antibody was designated MAb362.