Good news on the 206 antibodies scientists isolated from 8 COVID patients

[Ghost Dog]

1. So the paper is here. The abstract reads:

https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.03.21.990770v1.full.pdf

... SARS-CoV-2 cellular entry depends on binding
34 between the viral Spike protein receptor-binding domain (RBD) and the
35 angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) target cell receptor. Here, we report
36 on the isolation and characterization of 206 RBD-specific monoclonal
37 antibodies (mAbs) derived from single B cells of eight SARS-CoV-2 infected
38 individuals. These mAbs come from diverse families of antibody heavy and light
39 chains without apparent enrichment for particular families in the repertoire. In
40 samples from one patient selected for further analyses, we found coexistence
41 of germline and germline divergent clones. Both clone types demonstrated
42 impressive binding and neutralizing activity against pseudovirus and live SARS43 CoV-2. 43 However, the antibody neutralizing potency is determined by
44 competition with ACE2 receptor for RBD binding. Surprisingly, none of the
45 SARS-CoV-2 antibodies nor the infected plasma cross-reacted with RBDs from
46 either SARS-CoV or MERS-CoV although substantial plasma cross-reactivity
47 to the trimeric Spike proteins from SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV was found.
48 These results suggest that antibody response to RBDs is viral species-specific
49 while that cross-recognition target regions outside the RBD. The specificity and
50 neutralizing characteristics of this plasma cross-reactivity requires further
51 investigation. Nevertheless, the diverse and potent neutralizing antibodies
52 identified here are promising candidates for prophylactic and therapeutic
53 SARS-CoV-2 interventions...