New SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine Candidates in Trials
Beryllium Sphere (r) writes:
"In a crisis, it is always best to have more than one option" -- Jean-Luc Picard. Or more than 11.
Vaccine development continues, and here are a few interesting ones mentioned in the latest Science News.
Vaxxinity (formerly COVAXX) uses multiple fragments of virus protein called peptides and has completed Phase I trials. Their product is stable at refrigerator temperatures.
Vaxart has yet another adenovirus-vector vaccine, with two SARS COV 2 proteins as payload. One is the nucleocapsid protein, which has been pretty constant over the history of the virus. The interesting thing about the vaccine is that it comes in a pill. "Amateurs study battles, generals study logistics". A room temperature vaccine that can be shipped through the mail and administered by someone without needle training would be an asset.
The other interesting thing is that the company hopes that something that goes through the gut will light up the mucosal immune subsystem, which is normally our first line of defense. Their founder says there is animal research suggesting that's an improvement, but TFA does not have references.
Valneva is a whole killed virus with two adjuvants.
Inovio comes with an interesting administration mechanism. It's injected just under the skin with a microarray of needles and an electric pulse. It is a DNA vaccine, with a room temperature shelf life of a year.
https://www.sciencenews.org/article/coronavirus-covid-vaccine-new-upcoming-pill-electricity, it may nag you for a subscription.
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