Recovered coronavirus patients donate blood plasma to help others

People who have recovered from coronavirus are donating their blood plasma to see if it will help infected patients to recover.

NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) have released photos of former patients donating their blood in a process that is called plasmapheresis.

The plasma from those who are now recovered from the virus will be rich with antibodies that have developed in their blood.

The antibodies steadily rise in the bloodstream of recovered patients and peaks between 21 and 28 days after they have recovered.

Chinese scientists carried out the preliminary study and said there were no serious adverse reactions after convalescent plasma transfusion.

Ten patients who had a fever and cough subsided within three days after they received a 200ml dose of plasma, said the clinical researchers.

Scientists at the University of Oxford who are working on a government-backed Rapid Testing Consortium have had a possible “breakthrough moment” in discovering immunity tests.

According to the Mail on Sunday, the government has reportedly bought 50m immunity tests, which shows if someone has had coronavirus.

Scientists from the consortium say up to 1m pinprick tests could be available by June, costing £10 each, and there could be up to 50m by 2021.