Scientists in Germany said they have been able to produce a nasal vaccine that can shut down a COVID-19 infection in the nose and throat, where the virus gets its first foothold in the body.
According to the team resident in Berlin, the vaccine developed during a recent study showed benefits over previous vaccines after it was tested on animals.
The team led by Geraldine Nouailles from the German capital’s Charité University Hospital made the report in the journal — Nature Microbiology on Tuesday.
It said the compound containing diluted coronaviruses was tested on hamsters on different schedules in comparison to a current standard messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) vaccine.
It added that the research is still in its early stages as there have not been any tests carried out so far on humans.
The co-author, Emanuel Wyler, from the Max Delbrück Centre, noted that it was unclear how long the vaccine protection lasts beyond the frame of the experiment.
He explained that the study shows that results on the so-called live attenuated vaccine indicated that the nasal spray vaccination triggered the strongest immunity.
“The effect is assessed based on the severity of the disease in the hamsters,” said Wyler.
Other factors such as virus replication, stimulation of immune memory and antibody concentration on the mucous membranes were also tested.
The authors from the Charité, the Free University of Berlin (FU) and the MDC presented a version that had not yet been reviewed by external experts as a preprint in 2022.
However, statements on study safety tests carried out in cooperation with the Swiss biotech start-up RocketVax AG, are pending.
The company is continuing the development of the vaccine and is preparing for a phase 1 clinical trial in humans.
“We won’t yet have a nasal spray coronavirus vaccine in Europe next winter. Vaccine development is not as fast as it was in the acute pandemic phase. A nasal vaccine from the U.S. pharmaceutical company Codagenix is more advanced than the Berlin project, but results of a phase 3 trial are still pending,” Wyler said
Vaccines that are injected build up immunity primarily in the blood and throughout the body.
With nasal vaccines, it is hoped that the virus will be targeted at the mucous membranes of the upper respiratory tract, where it first attacks.
The goal is to increase the protection against transmission of the virus.
The current vaccines significantly decrease the risk of severe illness and death but provide less protection against infection with, for example, the Omicron subvariant of the virus.
Other coronavirus nasal vaccines in India and China were already approved for use in September 2022.
(NAN)
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