Ten people have been given antibodies as a form of emergency protection after being exposed to coronavirus, in the first trial of its kind. The experimental jab is being offered to people who have been in close contact with a confirmed Covid-19 case within the past eight days. If it proves effective, it could protect vulnerable people who haven't yet been, or can't be, vaccinated.And it could help to contain outbreaks.

The trial, run at University College London Hospitals (UCLH) NHS Trust, is looking at whether an injection of two different antibodies could prevent someone who has been exposed to Covid from developing the disease - or at least from becoming very ill. Vaccines take weeks to offer full protection, meaning it's too late for them to be given once someone already has the virus brewing in their system. But this monoclonal antibody treatment, developed by the drugs company AstraZeneca, should work to neutralise the virus immediately. And it gives ongoing protection for up to a year.

The trial team is led by UCLH virologist Dr Catherine Houlihan, who explained that the jab works by "donating" antibodies:

She confirmed that this technique was already used post-exposure for other viruses like rabies, and chickenpox in pregnant people.

The first results of the trial are expected in the spring.