Explainer | Which Asian labs are working on antibody treatments in the fight against Covid-19?

The deadly coronavirus pandemic has sent scientists around the world racing to identify potential treatments, as Covid-19 cases continue to soar.

With more than 9 million infected and 480,000 dead, doctors have tried a range of methods, including medication used to treat Ebola and malaria, and cocktails of HIV drugs.

But with limited success and governments now concerned that the development of a vaccine or cure is still a far-flung dream, researchers are now turning to a new method: antibody therapy.

At least five antibody treatments are now in the works, with most of them in labs across Asian countries, including Singapore, Japan and South Korea. Mainland China, the initial epicentre of the coronavirus outbreak, this month started antibody therapy clinical trials, according to state media.