A universal vaccine that can protect against cold, flu, Covid and allergies is a significant step closer, scientists believe.
Stanford Medicine researchers in the US have tested a vaccine formula on mice that protects against a range of respiratory viruses, bacteria which causes sepsis and even house dust mites.
The vaccine is delivered through a nasal spray and provides broad protection in the lungs for several months.
If this vaccine was developed for humans it could replace multiple jabs every year for winter respiratory infections and may even work against new pandemic bugs.
“I think what we have is a universal vaccine against diverse respiratory threats,” Dr Bali Pulendran, director of the Institute for Immunity, Transplantation and Infection at Stanford Medicine and lead author said.
“Imagine getting a nasal spray in the fall months that protects you from all respiratory viruses including Covid-19, influenza, respiratory syncytial virus and the common cold, as well as bacterial pneumonia and early spring allergens,” Dr Pulendran said. “That would transform medical practice.”
For the study published in the journal Science, mice were given a drop of the vaccine, known as GLA-3M-052-LS+OVA, in their noses which offered protection for several months.
Researchers demonstrated that helpful T cells in the lungs, which are working against pathogens, could send signals to the body’s innate immune cells to keep them active.
Instead of trying to mimic part of a pathogen, the vaccine mimics the signals that immune cells use to communicate with each other during an infection.
Dr Pulendran thinks two doses of the nasal spray would be enough to provide protection in people and estimates that, depending on funding, the vaccine might be available within five to seven years.
Although Professor Ian Jones, a virologist at Reading University, believes the new vaccine design will be used in the future, he warns a universal vaccine is a way off.
“We are some way from a true one-jab-and-forget-it vaccine as the safety considerations are considerable given how diverse the human population is. A one size fits all may not work, and the current seasonal jabs, for flu or Covid or RSV, will remain the norm for some time yet,” he told the Independent.
Professor Jonathan Ball, virologist at Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (LSTM) also believes scientists are “big steps” away from a truly universal vaccine.
He said: “We have to ensure that keeping the body on ‘high alert’ doesn’t lead to friendly fire, where a hyper-ready immune system accidentally triggers unwelcome side-effects.”
Professor of vaccinology at University of Oxford, Daniela Ferreira, found the research “exciting”.
“Over our lifetime, we’re constantly exposed to viruses and bacteria that infect the airways. As a result, most of us carry ‘memory’ immune cells, including some that live in the lining of the nose and lungs. This research shows it may be possible to use that existing immune memory as a foundation for broadly protection – even of unrelated pathogens,” she explained.
