BDN talks with Bayer about COVID-19, antiviral properties of lobster blood
The Bangor Daily News spoke with Bob Bayer, professor emeritus of animal and veterinary sciences and former head of the Lobster Institute at the University of Maine, about the possibility that an extract from lobster blood could be used to treat COVID-19. Bayer leads Orono-based startup Lobster Unlimited LLC, which he said is looking for a bio-secure lab that is willing to test the lobster byproduct on the virus. “It’s a potential treatment,” he said. Hemocyanin, a protein that carries oxygen to a lobster’s cells, has antiviral and immune-boosting properties, the BDN reported. Whether or not it might be effective against COVID-19 is “far from a sure thing,” according to Bayer, but worth testing. News Center Maine also reported on Bayer’s work.