British and American scientists have developed a vaccine against all coronaviruses

This new experimental vaccine, which is currently being tested in mice, can protect people as well as all types of coronaviruses, including those whose existence is still unknown.

A universal coronavirus vaccine? According to a report published this Monday, May 6, in the journal Nature Nanotechnology, American and British scientists have developed a new vaccine that potentially protects against coronaviruses, The Guardian reports.

The experimental vaccine, developed by scientists at the Universities of Cambridge, Oxford and the California Institute of Technology, has so far only been tested on mice, but has proven to be very successful. This marks a turning point in preventive vaccinology, as it will allow protection against viruses that do not yet exist and against possible pandemics even before they appear.

A vaccine for the next pandemic?

The new vaccine trains the immune system to recognize proteins common to several types of coronaviruses, some of which are transmitted from bats to humans. By training the body to attack these viruses, the vaccine also provides protection against other coronaviruses not represented in the vaccine, including some that haven’t even been identified yet.

“We have shown that a relatively simple vaccine can still provide a disparate response to a range of different viruses,” said Rory Hills, a PhD student in the Department of Pharmacology at the University of Cambridge and first author of the report.

“Our goal is to create a vaccine that will protect us from the next coronavirus pandemic and have it ready before the pandemic starts,” he said.

Tests conducted on mice showed that the vaccine generated a broad immune response to various coronaviruses, including Sars-Cov-1, the pathogen that caused the SARS epidemic in 2003.

“Create vaccines in advance”

In a press release published by the University of Cambridge, scientists concluded that it is not necessary to wait for the emergence of new coronaviruses to create a vaccine. “We know enough about coronaviruses and the different immune responses to them that we can now begin to develop protective vaccines against unknown coronaviruses,” said Professor Mark Howarth from the Department of Pharmacology at the University of Cambridge and author of the report.

In the same press release, the researcher praised the “excellent work” of scientists who were able to create a vaccine during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We need to find a way to do even better in the future, and an important part of that is to start making vaccines early,” he added.

The new vaccine is much simpler in design than other vaccines currently in development, which scientists say should speed its progress to clinical trials. It can be produced in existing microbial fermentation facilities, Hills told The Guardian, adding that researchers are working with industrial partners on ways to scale up the process.

If the vaccine proves safe and effective in people, one option would be to use it as a Covid booster, with the added benefit of protecting against other coronaviruses, according to the British newspaper.