An at-home nasal spray treatment for COVID-19 will be put to the test by Melbourne biomedical researchers, as the University of Melbourne and Monash University in Australia receive $4.2 million to establish a six-month clinical trial lead by Northern Hospital in collaboration with Oxford University.

Heparin, a widely used blood-thinning drug to treat or prevent blood clots forms the base of the nasal spray treatment that is simple to administer, stable at room temperature and available globally.

Director of Lung Health Research Centre, University of Melbourne Professor Gary Anderson said the spray will be easy to use, with two puffs in each nostril, three times a day.

The IntraNasal HEpaRin Trial (INHERIT) will be led by the Northern Hospital, using an innovative monitoring and treatment platform that allows researchers to access and remotely treat patients within 24 hours of their diagnosis, speeding up treatment and providing monitoring through portable oximeter devices that measure oxygen levels in blood.

With the help of University of Melbourne, Monash and Oxford University researchers, the team has confirmed Heparin can block the transmission of COVID-19 and prevent infection, making way for clinical trials to begin.