A promising candidate
Scientists have presented a new universal candidate vaccine against influenza
Svetlana Maslova, Hi-tech+
Experiments have shown that a single vaccination leads to a long-term immune response against several strains of the influenza virus. Now the same technology is being tested against SARS-CoV-2.
A team from the National University of Singapore has developed a new vaccine platform for delivering the M2e antigen to immune cells. M2e is a highly conserved peptide, which is known for its potentially universal properties as a candidate for a vaccine against different subtypes of influenza A, but so far the antigen has had a limited ability to cause a strong and prolonged immune response, according to a press release from the NUS-Monash University collaboration produces universal flu vaccine candidate.
Now a special system of M2e delivery to dendritic cells using the Clec9A antibody has made it possible to circumvent these restrictions.
Scientists have shown that even a single vaccination caused a strong and stable immune response against various strains of the virus in laboratory mice. Equally important, Clec9A-M2e immunization significantly increased pre-existing anti-M2e titers from previous influenza exposure. This means that it has become possible to reduce dosages and the risks of side effects, explain the authors of the article published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (Kavishna et al., A single-shot vaccine approach for the universal influenza A vaccine candidate M2e).
Currently, scientists are considering the possibility of adapting the technology against other infectious diseases, including COVID-19. In both cases, the technology can provide the creation of a universal vaccine that does not have to be regularly adapted against different strains of viruses that appear every year or, as in the case of SARS-CoV-2, more often.
At the moment, studies of candidate vaccines against influenza and COVID-19 in the spray format are continuing. For example, experiments have shown that they are much more effective than traditional injectable vaccines.
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