SARS-CoV-2 is the causative agent for COVID-19, the pandemic which has kept the whole world on its toes. It has not only claimed millions of lives but also means of livelihoods. However, says Cerus Corporation (NASDAQ:CERS) INTERCEPT Blood System can inactivate SARS-CoV-2. This is about results from a successful study on the same, which also demonstrated complete inactivation, to below the limit of detection, of other coronaviruses.
Plasma components, which were using both infection and molecular assays, were used during the in vitro study. Cell culture passaging tests were carried out, and this was an endorsement of complete confirmation of inactivation over time.
The significance of the study results with the current global COVID-19 pandemic
In the worrying status that the whole world has been thrown into, the pharmaceutical industry has been to test. Not only in the development of a possible vaccine for the coronavirus but also the period within which it can do so in an unpredictable menace.
Nonetheless, hundreds of companies are now in different stages of developing different vaccines; thus such results from Cerus Corporation are a hopeful sign of being able to arrest the situation.
Cerus’ chief medical officer, Dr. Richard Benjamin, says, ‘’… these study results are significant in showing efficacy against a highly pathogenic coronavirus… this study indicates that the INTERCEPT Blood System could reduce the potential risk of SARS-CoV-2 transmission.’’
Cerus’ Dedication to Safeguard the World’s Blood Supply
The approval for the manufacture of INTERCEPT plasma by the FDA is a substantial milestone for Cerus’. It is within the company’s ongoing strategy to enrich its global supply chain initiated years ago. “Obi” Greenman, Cerus’ CEO, says that US customers’ use of the INTERCEPT Blood System will be a natural addition to the already adopted INTERCEPT platelets.
Today, the primary role of Cerus’ is to protect the world’s blood supply. It is also focusing on protecting patients through the delivery of reliable products. The company develops and markets the INTERCEPT Blood System in Europe, the Middle East, the US, the Commonwealth of Independent States, and selected countries in other regions.
