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Originally posted by article
Newly emerging flu viruses could soon be countered by a treatment that Charles Stark Draper Laboratory is developing that "traps" viruses before they can infect host cells. Initial testing on the treatments, which each use tiny, non-toxic particles that can be injected, inhaled, or eaten, has shown them to be effective and safe against a multitude of strains of disease. Nanotraps, which could be taken at the first sign of infection or exposure and is expected to begin clinical trials in two to five years.

The nanotraps look like the surface of a cell, with numerous carbohydrate molecules attached that closely resemble those targeted by flu viruses in the human respiratory system. These molecules act as bait for the flu virus, which bind to the nanotrap instead of a host cell and are cleared away with mucus, preventing infection. The research team has demonstrated in the laboratory that the nanotraps effectively countered multiple influenza strains able to infect humans and went on to show nanotraps protected mice infected with the flu. They have also developed additional particles geared toward other types of respiratory viruses.

Nanotraps, unlike most vaccines, are not strain specific and are designed to be effective against newly emerging strains of human-adapted influenza virus. Since nanotraps mimic a fundamental step in the viral life cycle-the binding of the virus to a host cell's receptor-nanotraps may offer an opportunity to treat devastating infectious diseases without causing the development of treatment resistance. The nanotrap molecule is composed mainly of compounds found naturally in the human body so it is likely to be safe as an inhalant, topical solution, or intravenous treatment and inexpensive to manufacture. With further development, nanotraps have the potential to treat a large range of infectious diseases because the attached carbohydrates can be tuned for other viruses such as HIV, RSV, Herpes, as well as bacteria and toxins.

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