Trials of this or a similar monoclonal antibody pair in the US showed no reduction in deaths from Covid.
1. That is just incorrect - if it were correct then the FDA would not have approved the use of monoclonals, yet they did.
2. We know monoclonals were used to treat the Orange shitgibbon back in December.
3. If you were correct, Public Health England would not be licencing their use.
4. Why would you think monoclonals produce 'side effects' in the way that humoral anti-bodies stimulated by a vaccine wouldn't?
5. I am intrigued as to why you think an anti-body produced in vitro is somehow different to an anti-body produced in vivo (Hint: There is no difference).
6. I very much doubt you understand what a monoclonal anti-body actually is.
For those that want to know just what monoclonal anti-bodies are:
We have known about them for 40+ years. When I was doing my BSc we used them as 'probes' to hunt out specific antigens (for eg on Bacterial cell surfaces) - you could tag them wth a radiological or fluorescent isotope and use them as diagnotic tools.
What is a monoclonal anti-body?
You will remember that, earlier in the thread, I discussed Lymphocytes and how they divide into 2 classes - those that recirculate in the blood and lymphatic system, and those that reside within the lymph nodes.
The former are T Cells (so called because they are processed in the thymus) - these divide into Cytotoxic T cells that kill infected cells as well as 'T Helper Cells' that 'present' foreign antigens to the anti-body producing cells and 'help' them with anti-body production (there are also K Cells - anti-body dependant cytotoxic cells that kill infections, as well as NK Cells that target cancer cells).
The cells that reside in the lymph nodes are B Cells - it is these cells that produce anti-bodies.
A single B Cell clonal line will produce a single specific anti-body, targeted against a single specific antigen.
So, if you can grow a single clonal line of B Cells in vitro (and you can - we've been doing it for 40+ years) you can produce a large amout of a single specific anti-bodies targeting a single antigen.
THAT is what monoclonal anti-bodies are.
Ergo, if you can produce monoclonals that target Covid19 you have a weapon against it.