Novel COVID-19 vaccines

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by SARS-CoV-2, has been a major health problem globally. COVID-19 cases in the U.S. account for approximately one third of the global prevalence. To date, no effective therapies are available to treat this disease, and a potent vaccine is urgently needed to prevent SARS-CoV-2 infection. To this end, several attempts are being made to produce vaccines by mainly focusing on the viral spike (S) protein as a potential immunogen which are expected to induce virus-neutralizing IgG antibodies. However, their ability to induce mucosal secretory (s) IgA antibody and T cell responses remains obscure. Conversely, vaccines inoculated by the intranasal (IN) route can induce protective B and T cell responses in the respiratory tract and lungs, including neutralizing sIgA antibodies in the airways. To this end, we are developing a vaccine that can be administered intranasally as a mist that offers an attractive strategy for mass vaccination, with wide acceptance in all age groups. In this research, we are investigating these aspects preclinically in various animal models to provide a proof-of concept that the intranasal vaccines can prevent SARS-CoV-2 infection effectively, since its major route of entry is the respiratory tract.