Dr. Dinh Ngoc Duy, a Vietnamese scientist who has been working at Cambridge University (the UK), is one of the main researchers in developing a drug for treating Covid-19 patients, VnExpress reported.

Dr. Dinh Ngoc Duy at the laboratory

Dr. Duy said that the drug is developed based on the Covid-19 convalescents' antibodies and antibodies obtained through microfluidic chip technology.

Microfluidic chip technology helps shorten the process of finding new drugs for clinical trials from 5-10 years to only about 3-4 months, Duy said, adding that after taking the convalescents' blood for analysis, the researchers will apply the technology to find immune cells which produce antibodies to fight against the coronavirus.

"We are finalizing the technique and the research results are also being tested on a group of volunteers to check the drug’s safety," said Dr. Duy.

After testing the safety of the drug, he wishes to bring microfluidic chip technology to Vietnam for treating cancer and other diseases, apart from Covid-19.

Currently, doctors in Vietnam are studying using blood plasma infusions from people who have recovered from the coronavirus to treat those still battling the infection.

Theoretically, plasma can be extracted from those who have recovered from Covid-19 to treat critically-ill novel coronavirus patients. The convalescent plasma contains antibodies that fight infections, and when injected into the body of the critical patient, it may help boost the patient's immunity and neutralize the viremia.

Pham Ngoc Thach, director of the National Hospital of Tropical Diseases, said experts are collecting and carefully researching medical documents and ways to limit possible complications to ensure safety for Covid-19 patients when they are on clinical trials.

Luong Ngoc Khue, director of the Medical Examination and Management Department under the Ministry of Health, said that there are currently no vaccines and proven treatment for the Covid-19 yet and convalescent plasma therapy is being considered a potential treatment for Covid-19 patients.