Researchers from the Institute of Science Tokyo and Osaka Medical and Pharmaceutical University said that they have developed a peptide that can bind to the spike proteins of SARS-CoV-2 to prevent COVID-19 infections.

The peptide, which is a short chain of amino acids, has shown effectiveness in experiments involving various coronavirus strains attempting to infect human cell lines and hamsters.

Researchers hope to conduct a physician-led clinical trial for possible preventive and therapeutic treatment.