October 5th, 2024

Studies suggest a drug-free nasal spray could ward off respiratory infections

Researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital developed a drug-free nasal spray, PCANS, which captures and neutralizes respiratory pathogens, showing effectiveness against viruses like influenza and SARS-CoV-2 in preclinical studies.

Read original articleLink Icon
Studies suggest a drug-free nasal spray could ward off respiratory infections

Researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital have developed a drug-free nasal spray, known as Pathogen Capture and Neutralizing Spray (PCANS), which shows promise in preventing respiratory infections caused by viruses and bacteria. Preclinical studies indicate that PCANS can effectively capture and neutralize pathogens, forming a gel-like barrier in the nasal cavity that immobilizes germs. The spray demonstrated a significant ability to block respiratory droplets, capturing twice as many as mucus alone. In laboratory tests, it neutralized nearly all tested pathogens, including influenza and SARS-CoV-2, and showed exceptional efficacy in mouse models, reducing viral levels in the lungs by over 99.99%. The formulation is based on ingredients recognized as safe by the FDA and has not yet been tested in humans. The researchers emphasize the need for additional protective measures against respiratory diseases, especially in light of ongoing threats like COVID-19 and seasonal influenza. Future studies may also explore the potential of PCANS to alleviate allergies.

- A new drug-free nasal spray could help prevent respiratory infections.

- The spray captures and neutralizes pathogens in the nasal cavity.

- Preclinical studies show it is effective against various viruses, including influenza and SARS-CoV-2.

- The formulation is based on FDA-approved ingredients and has not yet been tested in humans.

- Future research may investigate its potential for allergy relief.

Link Icon 23 comments
By @HPsquared - 7 months
I use a similar nasal spray for allergies (Becodefence). Basically a physical barrier coating the nasal passages. For me and my allergies, it's super effective.

Never thought about using it to block viral infections, but it makes sense: coating the nasal passages with artificial "mucus-like substance" so particles don't reach the membranes. Makes total sense that approach also work for viruses.

By @iandanforth - 7 months
I will admit to following the swab-nose-with-neosporin protocol following a previous mouse study with similar results. I use this during travel and have had no short terms ill effects and caught no infections while following it. (Not a doctor, not well controlled, just a random internet guy).

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/research/coronavirus/publicatio...

By @wojciii - 7 months
Or .. you could use salt spray .. the kind of designed for kids. Its just salt and water.

I stopped using other kinds of spray since discovering that it fixes my sinus infections in a matter of a day or two.

By @nayroclade - 7 months
When I read about something like this, my first thought is always, is this something we could have evolved ourselves? And if so, what haven’t we? Thicker mucus seems like something we have evolved, so was there some survival trade-off, perhaps in terms of general quality of respiration, that meant we didn’t?
By @nikolay - 7 months
Such spray [0] has been on the market by multiple brands and is backed by studies [1]. It has a throat spray and lozenges, too. There are some other patented variants with a different type of carrageenan.

[0]: https://www.carragelose.com/

[1]: https://www.carragelose.com/en/publications

By @jonplackett - 7 months
I remember reading a while back that your eye is actually a big vector for getting viruses. We all touch surfaces and then touch our face and eyes a lot more than we realise.
By @jayess - 7 months
I do a povodone/saline nasal spray rinse when flying. Then use my navage to clear out my sinuses when I arrive at my destination. Can't tell you if it works, but I historically have gotten sick when I travel and I've noticed a reduction in getting sick since I started this protocol.
By @helph67 - 7 months
Vitamin D daily may provide protection from viruses and skin cancers. https://scitechdaily.com/study-finds-vitamin-d3-important-fo...

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36580363/

By @idontwantthis - 7 months
> PCANS nasal spray could effectively block infection from an influenza virus (PR8) at 25 times the lethal dose

A certain amount of influenza virus acts as a toxin and just kills you?

By @pulvinar - 7 months
The article doesn't say how the spray affects the sense of smell, which I'd guess it diminishes or blocks. We evolved that sense for good survival reasons.
By @havaloc - 7 months
Shields up: "PCANS forms a gel, increasing its mechanical strength by a hundred times, forming a solid barrier"

I wonder if it feels unpleasant

By @asimpletune - 7 months
I love the elegance of a simple solution like this to solve seemingly much more sophisticated problems.

This is very good engineering imo.

By @squillion - 7 months
COVID is airborne, it doesn’t spread via droplets. It’s not clear whether this spray can also block airborne viruses or it only works on droplets.
By @hypochondricdev - 7 months
If pure saline solution is too watery, couldn't I just add hyaluronic acid to make it more viscous?
By @arisAlexis - 7 months
I am using iovir it has some read algae in supposedly does kind of the same thing
By @emmelaich - 7 months
So, internal disinfectant. Who'd have thought.
By @OutOfHere - 7 months
The article is useless because it says nothing about what the active ingredients are. The corresponding reference is also equally useless since it's paywalled. Nothing to see here.
By @analog31 - 7 months
When I saw "drug-free" the first thing that jumped to mind was a placebo. Which would not have shocked me.
By @magicmicah85 - 7 months
While cool, studies like this always remind me that we deliberately breed and infect animals to see if they suffer and die from the disease or the cure.

No need to remind me that without this we wouldn’t have all our medical advancements, it’s just a sad footnote to all of modern medicine, that’s all.

By @gwbas1c - 7 months
> They have not studied PCANS directly in humans

Stopped reading there. As promising as it sounds, I'll be a lot more interested when this is a product that's proven to work.

(Joke) Wake me when the human studies are done

By @EwanG - 7 months
In mice, and also using a printed replica of a nasal cavity. It will be a while before we even see human tests, and I'm sort of curious how humans will respond to feeling their noses filled with a gel...