In a follow-up, a paper describing 10 SARS-CoV-2 miniprotein inhibitors was published in "Science" on September 9. Two of these inhibitors, LCB1 and LCB3, are several times more potent than the best monoclonal antibodies being developed against SARS-CoV-2, both on a molar and mass basis. In addition, the research suggests that these inhibitors retain their activity at elevated temperatures, are 20-fold smaller than an antibody and thus, have 20-fold more potential neutralizing sites, increasing the potential efficacy of a locally administered drug. The small size and high stability of the inhibitors is expected to make them adequate to a gel formulation that can be nasally applied or as a powder to be administered directly onto the respiratory system. The researchers will work on developing these inhibitors into therapeutics and prophylactics in the months ahead. LCB1, the most potent of these inhibitors, is currently being evaluated on rodents.