Researchers have developed a new way to prevent people falling ill with potential pandemic level viruses – before they have even become a threat.
Dubbed ‘universal vaccine’ technology, the Cambridge University-led team believe that it can be used to develop jabs that offer a broad protection from thousands of variants of viruses – such as coronaviruses or Ebola – in a single formula.
For the first time in history, the team used AI to design a ‘super-antigen’ that gives lasting protection against a broad range of viruses, even as they mutate.
The key difference here is that the vaccines which are currently offered for flu and Covid-19 use antigens from specific virus strains or variants that have already been detected in humans – doctors are effectively always playing ‘catch up’ as the viruses mutate and evolve.
This is why traditional vaccines can only offer limited protection and must be regularly updated and readministered as a booster jab.
But the new vaccine technology would allow people to be protected against viruses before they mutate, potentially stopping pandemic-triggering strains before they can take hold.
‘We’ve converted vaccine development from being reactive to being future proof,’ said lead researcher Professor Jonathan Heeney from the Lab of Viral Zoonotics, University of Cambridge’s Department of Veterinary Medicine.
‘Our vaccines will continue to provide protection against viruses even as they mutate into new strains.
The new vaccine can protect against future mutations (file photo)
‘We’ve overcome the problem of traditional vaccines, which have limited protection.
‘It means we can escape the constant cycle of chasing the virus variants circulating in humans and updating the vaccines to try to catch up, like a dog chasing its tail.’
The results of the first human trials of the revolutionary new jab, published in the Journal of Infection, look promising and found the new jabs to be safe, well tolerated and causing minimal side-effects.
Thirty-nine people aged between 18 and 50 were given a universal Sarbeco coronavirus vaccine, which covers a large group of viruses that occur in nature including SARS-CoV-2, which caused the COVID pandemic.
Researchers noted that the vaccine triggered immune responses in the volunteers not only to SARS-CoV-2 and SARS, but to related bat viruses that could potentially jump from animals to humans and cause future pandemics.
Further development of the universal vaccine technology is needed before it is ready for public use. Phase 2 will assess the vaccine’s ability to induce immune responses in a wider and more diverse population.
‘Viruses like Influenza, Coronaviruses and the Ebola group are evolving continuously and by the time vaccines are rolled out, they may be poorly matched – the current ‘reactive’ vaccine system struggles to keep pace,’ said Professor Saul Faust from the University of Southampton.
‘This new class of universal vaccines are future-proofed. They not only protect against many variants simultaneously, but potentially against related viruses that haven’t yet emerged and spilt over to humans.
Ebola is a severe viral haemorrhagic fever that can cause organ failure and internal bleeding
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‘If we can develop and clinically advance this new class of vaccines before a virus outbreak begins, millions of lives could be saved, lockdowns avoided and the economy preserved.’
At present, the biggest concern to global public health is Ebola after a new outbreak in Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo left thousands sickened and an estimated 260 people dead.
Ebola is a severe viral haemorrhagic fever that can cause organ failure and internal bleeding, and in advanced stages, patients may bleed from the eyes, nose and other parts of the body.
Symptoms can begin suddenly between two and 21 days after infection, initially resembling flu with fever, fatigue, muscle pain and headache, before progressing to vomiting, diarrhoea and, in severe cases, bleeding.
The virus spreads through direct contact with infected bodily fluids, including blood, vomit and saliva, and is not airborne, meaning transmission requires close physical contact.
Only people who are already symptomatic can pass the infection on.
Fatality rates vary between outbreaks, but can reach around 30 to 50 per cent for the Bundibugyo strain, making it one of the most dangerous infectious diseases in the world.
Particular concern surrounds the current outbreak because there is no approved vaccine or specific treatment for this strain, with control efforts relying on early detection, isolation, contact tracing and strict hygiene measures.
However, it was revealed earlier this week that there are currently three Ebola vaccines in development.
