«Not just against flu or COVID». US scientists are developing a universal vaccine against all types of lung infections
Researchers from Stanford University have already tested their "universal vaccine" on animals, but now they will need to conduct tests involving humans.
American scientists are developing a new vaccine in the form of a nasal spray, which may be able to protect the body from all types of flu, colds, lung bacterial infections, and even some types of allergies, writes the BBC.
They say they are using a radically different approach compared to traditional vaccines, which humanity has been using for more than 200 years.
Experts in this field consider the research results truly impressive, although the work is still in its early stages. They hope that the vaccine could become a huge step forward in the fight against diseases.
How does the new vaccine differ from old ones and how does it work?
Current vaccines "teach" our body to fight one specific infection. For example, a measles vaccination will only protect against that one disease, just like a chickenpox vaccination or any other virus.
This is how immunization has worked since the late 18th century when British physician Edward Jenner first applied it.
But the approach, described by the authors in Science journal, does not involve training the immune system. It mimics the principles by which immune cells exchange information with each other.
Vaccination is carried out using a nasal spray, as a result of which white blood cells in our lungs (known as macrophages) remain ready for activation. As a result, they begin to act regardless of which specific infection attempts to enter the body.
In experiments on animals, a similar vaccination was effective for approximately three months.
The study showed that the increased readiness of macrophages helped significantly reduce the number of viruses that penetrated the body through the lungs — one hundred to a thousand times fewer were detected.
At the same time, the immune system was «fully ready to instantly repel the attack» of those viruses that still managed to penetrate, says Bali Pulendran, Professor of Microbiology and Immunology at Stanford University.
The research group also found that the new vaccine helps protect against two types of bacteria, Staphylococcus aureus (golden staphylococcus) and Acinetobacter baumannii, which cause several hospital-acquired infections.
«This vaccine, which we call universal, leads to a much broader immune response and protects not only against the flu virus, not only against COVID, not only against the common cold, but practically against all viruses and many different bacteria, as we found experimentally, and even against allergies», — Pulendran told the BBC.
Changes in the immune system's function also, apparently, make it less reactive to allergens contained in dust, which can cause allergic asthma.
What questions remain unanswered for now
«This is truly groundbreaking research», — says Daniela Ferreira, Professor of Vaccinology at Oxford University (she did not participate in the work of the Stanford scientists).
According to her, the work «could change the principles by which we protect people from colds and other respiratory infections» if the results are confirmed in human trials. According to her, one of the advantages of the research is that its authors clearly described how the new vaccine actually works.
Ferreira believes that the Stanford research «could be a significant step forward» and allow people to be protected from infections.
However, there are still many questions that need to be answered.
In experiments, the vaccine was administered using a nasal spray, but in the case of humans, nebulizers (an inhalation device) may have to be used to allow it to reach human lungs.
It is not yet known whether the human body will react to it in a similar way and how long the immune system will remain in a state of heightened readiness. Human and mouse immune systems differ from each other, including because our immunity is formed as a result of interaction with infections over many decades.
Researchers now hope to conduct tests in which people will first receive the vaccine, and then the virus — to check how the body reacts to it.
It is also possible that more active functioning of the immune system, i.e., a disruption of its usual mode of operation, could have consequences for people and cause immunological disorders.
Professor of Molecular Virology Jonathan Ball from the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine considers the work undoubtedly impressive. But at the same time, he warns: «We need to make sure that keeping the body in a "state of heightened readiness" does not lead to "friendly fire," where an overactive immune system accidentally causes undesirable side effects».
But American researchers do not believe that the immune system should constantly remain in a state of heightened readiness. They suggest that their development could complement, rather than replace, existing vaccines.
In the initial stages of a pandemic — such as at the beginning of the global spread of COVID in 2020 — a universal vaccine would allow time to be gained while a specialized remedy for a specific disease is being developed.
«This could reduce mortality, make the disease less severe, and likely create immune resilience, the ability for rapid recovery. The results would be very significant», — Pulendran believes.
He describes another potential application of such a vaccine: at the beginning of winter, with the spread of viruses common for this time of year, «one can imagine using such a seasonal spray that would create broad immunity».
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