Anthony Fauci, MD: Antibody Research for COVID-19
What the potential of monoclonal antibodies may be, and what's currently understood about serologic antibodies.
This week, Anthony Fauci, MD, director of the National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), joined Lungcast, a respiratory health podcast series from HCPLive® and the American Lung Association (ALA).
Fauci discussed his personal and professional interest in ongoing monoclonal antibody investigations, suggesting they may serve a role in outpatient, inpatient, nursing home, and at-home care—both at a preventive and a therapeutic level.
“The one thing that we need to do is get a bunch more interventions for early infection to prevent people from going on to needing hospitalization,” he explained.
On the topic of serologic antibody development in post-infected patients, Fauci said it is still too early to put any confidence behind the concept of assured immunology. As such, antibody testing currently limited interpretation—and should not inform a person’s levels of social distancing during the pandemic.
“I think there are so many unknowns, we better put a pause and say, ‘We’re not going to make any definitive statements about what an antibody test means, except to say it means you were infected’,” he said.
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