A needle-free nasal COVID vaccine, effective against all variants, has being developed in Brisbane.
Griffith University researchers believe the next-generation mucosal vaccine is a gamechanger not only for delivering the vaccine itself, but also for people who are needle-phobic.
Professor Suresh Mahalingam said the vaccine had proven to offer long-term protection for up to a year or more.
“This is a live attenuated intranasal vaccine, called CDO-7N-1, designed to be administered intranasally, thereby inducing potential mucosal immunity as well as systemic immunity with just a single dose,” Professor Mahalingam said.
“It’s been designed to be administered as single dose, ideally as a booster vaccine, as a safe alternative to needles with no adverse reactions in the short or long term.”
Study lead author Dr Xiang Liu said the vaccine provided cross-protection against all variants of concern, and had neutralising capacity against SARS-CoV-1.
“The vaccine offers potent protection against transmission, prevents reinfection and the spread of the virus, while also reducing the generation of new variants,” Dr Liu said.
“Unlike the mRNA vaccine which targets only the spike protein, CDO-7N-1 induces immunity to all major SARS-CoV-2 proteins and is highly effective against all major variants to date.
“Importantly, the vaccine remains stable at 4°C for seven months, making it ideal for low- and middle-income countries.”
He said the vaccine has been licensed to Indian Immunologicals Ltd, a major vaccine manufacturer.
