A nasal spray that forms a barrier against COVID-19 is due to be launched locally next week, providing a secondary layer of protection, particularly in crowded, enclosed and high-risk settings.
Touted as an additional, clinically-proven tool in the battle against the coronavirus, the Israeli product, Taffix™ (Powder) Spray Device, claims to offer 97 per cent shielding from respiratory viruses in the nasal cavity – also blocking SARS-CoV-2.
Every application works within 50 seconds and gives five-hour protection, the manufacturer, Nasus Pharma said.
It insists, however, that intra-nasal antiviral protection does not replace the wearing of face masks. The company strongly recommends it is used in addition to other preventative health measures, including social distancing, regular hand washing and compliance with other government restrictions.
The product, indicated for use as a mechanical and chemical barrier against allergens and viruses, is already available in over 20 countries in Europe, America, Asia and Africa, with ongoing talks to extend its reach further.
Local representatives PAC3 Ltd said the reason why it was not available in Malta earlier was because registration took time. Also, the biotech company, with limited international exposure, was not necessarily looking at a country the size of Malta and needed to be convinced.
But, come next week, the spray will be offered to local pharmacies, selling at €18 for 200 puffs, PAC3 director, Philip Pace said, adding that it retails at around €60 on Amazon and eBay, excluding transport costs.
This is no wonder drug. You either like it or not
Legally marketed in Europe under CE certification as an over-the-counter general Class 1 medical device product, Pace said the Malta Medicines Authority and the competition and consumer affairs regulator have also been notified.
Manufactured to the strictest of compliance with regulatory requirements, it has been used by hundreds of thousands of people across the globe, with no health concerns reported, he continued.
“This is no wonder drug. You either like it or not,” Pace said, referring to some initial reactions that because it blocks almost all viruses, the body is not building up its natural immunity.
Developed on the basis of established scientific principles and knowledge of the impact of pH on viral survival, Taffix™ powder creates a unique acidified gel above the nasal mucosa that lasts five hours, significantly shielding its cells from inhaled viruses through both mechanical and chemical protection.
The nose – not the mouth – is the primary gateway for all airborne droplet viral infections that contaminate mainly the nasal mucosa, having a pH of 6.5 that respiratory viruses and coronaviruses love.
But the ultra-thin gel created by the spray builds a hostile microenvironment in the nose by lowering the pH level to 3.5, where up to 97 per cent of infections are rendered ineffective.
“Even as we continue wearing masks in public and observing social distancing, it is prudent to adopt a secondary layer of personal protection to stay safe,” Pace said, highlighting that many masks on the market were not guarding from anything but dust.
“On May 10, restaurants will reopen and we will be seated at the same table next to others, without masks to eat,” he said.
“The product should give that additional peace of mind to be able to get on with life as we are more exposed.”
It would be even more “handy” against the transmission of the virus when face coverings can eventually be removed altogether, enabling the resumption of social and economic activities in a safer way, Pace added.
“By using the spray before going to the office, the gymnasium, a restaurant or a museum people are taking an extra precaution in their new daily routine to avoid the virus infection,” he said.
The spray is recommended for use when leaving the home.
Even though it was created to protect from the pandemic, it is also claimed to prevent random flu, for example.
Efficacy
A survey of the nasal inhaler’s efficacy in blocking viral invasion into cells, carried out in Tel Aviv, Israel, last October, showed a reduction in infection rates of COVID-19 by at least fourfold after a super-spread mass gathering, the manufacturer said.
Conducted in Bney Brak – Israel’s worst-hit city – where members of a synagogue community were offered the use of Taffix, the survey was planned around an event that involved many hours of prayer in close proximity.
Users and non-users among the synagogue community were followed up to 14 days after the event and the result was an infection rate of 2.4 and 10 per cent respectively, according to the biopharmaceutical company that is specialising in the development of a powder-based intranasal product portfolio to address acute medical conditions and public health threats.