Scientists in Germany claim to have made a nasal vaccine that can stop Covid-19 infections in the nose and throat.
In hamster experiments, two doses of this live but weakened vaccine stopped the virus from copying itself in the animals' upper airways, resulting in "sterilizing immunity" and preventing illness, a long-sought goal during the pandemic.
This breakthrough comes as other nasal vaccines are being tested in clinical trials or have already reached late-stage testing. However, experts caution that more work is needed before this vaccine can be widely used.
China and India have recently rolled out nasal vaccines given through the nasal tissues, but effectiveness data for these has not been published, leaving it unclear how well they may actually be working.
To combat the virus, researchers are focusing on boosting mucosal immunity by strengthening immune defenses in the upper airways. The goal is to prevent infections before they occur and reduce transmission.
A new approach to this old idea involves manipulating the genetic material of a weakened coronavirus to make it harder for cells to translate. This technique, called codon pair deoptimization, effectively shows the virus to the immune system without causing illness.
While promising results have been shown in hamster studies, more research is required before this vaccine can be tested in humans. The development process has been slow and challenging due to high costs and a lack of interest in vaccine development among some groups.
To combat Covid-19 effectively, researchers hope that future vaccines will be able to prevent infections at an early stage, reducing the risk of transmission.
In hamster experiments, two doses of this live but weakened vaccine stopped the virus from copying itself in the animals' upper airways, resulting in "sterilizing immunity" and preventing illness, a long-sought goal during the pandemic.
This breakthrough comes as other nasal vaccines are being tested in clinical trials or have already reached late-stage testing. However, experts caution that more work is needed before this vaccine can be widely used.
China and India have recently rolled out nasal vaccines given through the nasal tissues, but effectiveness data for these has not been published, leaving it unclear how well they may actually be working.
To combat the virus, researchers are focusing on boosting mucosal immunity by strengthening immune defenses in the upper airways. The goal is to prevent infections before they occur and reduce transmission.
A new approach to this old idea involves manipulating the genetic material of a weakened coronavirus to make it harder for cells to translate. This technique, called codon pair deoptimization, effectively shows the virus to the immune system without causing illness.
While promising results have been shown in hamster studies, more research is required before this vaccine can be tested in humans. The development process has been slow and challenging due to high costs and a lack of interest in vaccine development among some groups.
To combat Covid-19 effectively, researchers hope that future vaccines will be able to prevent infections at an early stage, reducing the risk of transmission.
. I mean, think about it... why did they just reveal this now? What if China and India's nasal vaccines were already done and they're just trying to distract us from something else? And what's the real deal with codon pair deoptimization? Sounds like some fancy science-y stuff that could be used for more than just Covid-19 
. I'm not saying it won't work, but let's keep an open mind... or should I say, a healthy dose of paranoia 
.
This is awesome news! I mean, we've been dealing with Covid for years now and it's crazy how far science has come in just a few years. I love that they're focusing on boosting mucosal immunity - it makes so much sense that if we can prevent infections from happening in the first place, we'd be golden! And the fact that this new vaccine is showing promise in hamster studies is super encouraging. I'm not gonna lie, I got a bit worried when all these clinical trials were going on and it seemed like nothing was being done... but now it feels like things are finally moving forward 
. Fingers crossed that we'll see this vaccine hitting the market soon!
just imagine a world where we dont have to live with covid anxiety all the time 
think about it, a nasal vaccine that can stop us from getting infected in the first place! its like having a superpower 
gotta make sure it works in humans too, which will take some more time.
. And the fact that it's using a weakened but live coronavirus as a tool to train our immune systems is pure genius 
. The fact that more research is needed before human trials can begin makes sense, but I'm confident that this tech has legs 
.
. But seriously, I hope this one works out because if we can get people vaccinated and stop Covid-19 in its tracks, that would be amazing 
. Let's just keep crossing our fingers and hoping for the best 
!
. First off, China and India have been rolling out these nasal vaccines without sharing full effectiveness data, which is super shady 
. We need more human trials and all that jazz before this vaccine hits the market 
. And can we talk about how expensive vaccine development has been? Like, how much should a cure cost, right? 
. If we can prevent infections at an early stage, that'd be a total game-changer for Covid-19 
. And this codon pair deoptimization technique sounds like a cool science-y thing 
.
. but seriously, the science behind codon pair deoptimization is so cool. they're basically re-writing the virus's instructions to make it invisible to our immune system. let's hope these human trials go smoothly and we can get this vaccine out there ASAP 
. and it's crazy to think that china and india are already testing their own nasal vaccines, but without the results being published... what's going on over there?