vaccination

COVID-19 Roundup: Experimental Vaccine, Nasal Spray

Experimental Vaccine

An experimental vaccine made from a genetically modified virus carrying a gene from SARS-CoV-2, effectively prevented pneumonia in mice infected with COVID-19.

Notably, because this vaccine utilizes a virus that is capable of reproducing, the researchers believe that is has a better chance of generating a strong immune response. This capability also means that the vaccine will be much easier to produce in large quantities, as it can be grown to high quantities in laboratories. 

NIH-Moderna Vaccine

New research shows that the mRNA-1273 vaccine, which is currently being evaluated in Phase 3 trials, effectively protected mice from infection with SARS-CoV-2. The vaccine was given as 2 intramuscular injections of 1-microgram dose each, 3 weeks apart. Mice who were exposed to the virus 5 or 13 weeks after the second dose were shown to be protected from infection, while those given only a single dose were shown to be protected at 7 weeks.

Nasal Spray

Researchers from the University of California, San Francisco, created a nanobody which they say can effectively disarm the spikes of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. The nanobody is inspired by antibodies found in camels, alpacas, and llamas.

In an as-of-yet peer-reviewed paper published on the bioRxiv preprint server, the researchers explained that the nanobody is able to be converted into a dry powder and aerosolized to be used as a nasal spray.

—Michael Potts

References:

  1. Case JB, Rothlauf PW, Chen RE, et al. Replication-competent vesicular stomatitis virus vaccine vector protects against SARS-CoV-2-mediated pathogenesis in mice. Published online July 30, 2020. Cell Host Microbe. Doi:10.1016/j.chom.2020.07.018
  2. Corbett KS, Edwards DK, Graham BS, et al. SARS-CoV-2 mRNA vaccine design enabled by prototype pathogen preparedness. Published online August 5, 2020. Nature. Doi:10.1038/s41586-020-2622-0
  3. Schoof M, Faust B, Saunders RA, et al. An ultra-high affinity synthetic nanobody blocks SARS-CoV-2 infection by locking Spike into an inactive conformation. Preprint. doi: 10.1101/2020.08.08.238469