Are Scientists Developing Chewing Gum That Could Cure COVID-19?

Scientists are developing a chewing gum laced with a plant-grown protein. The protein will serves as a “trap” for the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which causes COVID-19. Further reducing viral load in saliva and potentially lowering transmission.

The researchers noted that people who are fully vaccinated can still become infected with SARS-CoV-2. Such patients can carry a viral load similar to those who are unvaccinated.

“SARS-CoV-2 replicates in the salivary glands, and we know that when someone who is infected sneezes, coughs, or speaks some of that virus can be expelled and reach others,” said Henry Daniell at the University of Pennsylvania in the US.

“This gum offers an opportunity to neutralize the virus in the saliva. It will give us a simple way to possibly cut down on a source of disease transmission.”

“Vaccination efforts have greatly helped in the fight against COVID-19, but even fully vaccinated individuals can still become infected. Moreover, recent research even suggests viral loads found in the saliva of vaccinated people are quite similar to the unvaccinated.”

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Research By Henry Daniell  

To test the chewing gum, the team grew ACE2 in plants, paired with another compound that enables the protein to cross mucosal barriers and facilitates binding. The researchers incorporated the resulting plant material into cinnamon-flavoured gum tablets.

Incubating samples obtained from nasopharyngeal swabs from COVID-positive patients with the gum. The samples showed that the ACE2 present could neutralise SARS-CoV-2 viruses. They then modified viruses, less-pathogenic than SARS-CoV-2, to express the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein.

The scientists observed that the gum largely prevented the viruses or viral particles from entering cells, either by blocking the ACE2 receptor on the cells or by binding directly to the spike protein.

Finally, the team exposed saliva samples from COVID-19 patients to the ACE2 gum and found that levels of viral RNA fell so dramatically to be almost undetectable.

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The research team is currently working towards obtaining permission to conduct a clinical trial to evaluate whether the approach is safe and effective when tested in people infected with SARS-CoV-2.

If the clinical trials prove the gum is safe and effective, it could be given to patients whose infection status is unknown, to reduce the likelihood of passing the virus to caregivers, the researchers added.

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