Sosok.ID – A new study conducted by scientists from China found that breast milk (ABOUT) can prevent or treat Covid-19.
Reported Sosok.ID from the South China The Morning Post, a research team in Beijing has tested the effect ABOUT on cells exposed to the virus Sars-CoV-2.
The milk used was collected in 2017, long before the pandemic occurred.
Meanwhile, the types of cells tested varied from animal kidney cells to young human lung and intestinal cells.
The result is the same: most of the live virus strains are killed by milk.
Breast milk “blocks viral attachments, entrances and even exits of viral replication,” wrote a team led by Professor Tong Yigang of Beijing University of Chemical Technology in two non-peer-reviewed papers posted on biorxiv.org on Friday.
Breastfeeding itself, previously, was thought to increase the risk of transmission of the corona virus.
In Wuhan, where the coronavirus was first detected, newborns were immediately separated from mothers who tested positive for Covid-19.
The babies were fed exclusively with formula milk, according to Chinese media reports in February.
The US Centers for Disease Control also warns that babies who drink breast milk from mothers who are suspected or tested positive for Covid-19 are also considered “suspects”.
However, recent studies support the World Organization’s (WHO) stance that mothers should breastfeed their babies even if they test positive for Covid-19.
As of June, the global health agency had tracked 46 Covid-19 patients from several countries who were breastfeeding their babies.
The viral gene was detected in breast milk in three mothers but there was no evidence of infection.
Only one child tested positive, but transmission by other means also cannot be ruled out.
Tong and colleagues mix some healthy cells into breast milk.
Then the milk is filtered to leave only the healthy cells.
The cells that have been mixed into breast milk are then exposed to the virus.
They observed that almost no binding or entry of the virus into these cells.
It also stops the replication of the virus in cells that are already infected.
They concluded that infection could be inhibited by breast milk, which has been known to have a suppressive effect on bacteria and viruses such as HIV.
Tong and his colleagues suspect the coronavirus is sensitive to several well-known antiviral proteins in milk, such as lactoferrin.
But they didn’t find a single protein that worked as expected.
Instead, they said the ingredient most closely resembled the viral inhibitor composition was whey, which contains several different proteins.
Whey from cows and goats suppressed live virus strains by about 70 percent, according to a study by Tong.
In comparison, the efficacy of human whey was 100 percent.
Breast milk is able to clear the virus in a wider range of cell types, but the researchers said it was unclear what caused the difference.
Tong and colleagues say they haven’t found any signs of danger caused by breast milk, which “promotes cell proliferation” while killing the virus.
Some parents are known to use donated breast milk to feed their babies, which is often pasteurized to eliminate potential contamination.
However, the team China found that heating milk to 90 degrees for 10 minutes deactivated whey protein.
It causes a degree of protection against corona virus will drop to below 20 percent.
“It is important to identify key factors for further development of antiviral drugs,” they concluded.
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SARS-CoV-2
