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From MIT, a cure for all viruses?

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Re: From MIT, a cure for all viruses?

#4
This is pretty cool, but it's so early in the drug -> product process that it's really difficult to get one's hopes up. The article indicates that they're nowhere near clinical trials, which often take 5 years by themselves - and most drugs get weeded out before they even get to this stage.

Re: From MIT, a cure for all viruses?

#5

Wow, is that real? How is this not front page news on every network? This would be as big as the discovery of antibiotics.

This appeared on reddit a few days ago, and the answer to your question is twofold.

First, this has not yet undergone human testing. In the history of pharmaceuticals, there have been many drugs that performed favorably in animal testing yet failed in human testing. It is simply too early to tell if this drug will be successful in humans.

Secondly, was the idea that eliminating all viruses, as this seems to do, is not the best solution. Our bodies would not get the opportunity to develop resistances in the way the immune system usually does so we would be susceptible to the virus the second time around.

Re: From MIT, a cure for all viruses?

#7

Wow, is that real? How is this not front page news on every network? This would be as big as the discovery of antibiotics.

This appeared on reddit a few days ago, and the answer to your question is twofold. First, this has not yet undergone human testing. In the history of pharmaceuticals, there have been many drugs that performed favorably in animal testing yet failed in human testing. It is simply too early to tell if this drug will be successful in humans. Secondly, was the idea that eliminating all viruses, as this seems to do, is no…

[deleted]

Re: From MIT, a cure for all viruses?

#9
post #3

I'm not accepting this real until a respected news network investigates it. That and the fact that they didn't seem to spell check / proof-read it first makes me suspicious.

"respected news network" at least from my point of view, this is a bit of an oxymoron, call me paranoid, but I'll take a good peer reviewed academic paper for my facts any day.
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