Researchers at the National Institutes of Health in Maryland reported that they have developed a potential Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) vaccine. In experiments in mice and macaques, the new vaccine demonstrated the ability to immunize against the Jordan N3 strain of the virus.
Since the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus was discovered in 2012, the number of cases has exceeded 1,000, and more than 400 deaths have been caused. People don’t know much about how this virus spreads. Research on the virus host has not yet been confirmed, and there is no effective treatment for the respiratory disease in which the virus produces severe symptoms in humans.
In the new study, Yongbiao Kang (transliteration) of the National Institutes of Health and Bonnie Graham and their research team infected animals with DNA encoding this viral protein. This shortened viral protein can be used in rats and macaques. A series of antibodies against the virus are stimulated in the body, and finally the experimental animals are immune, so that they can avoid the pneumonia caused by the Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus. Related papers were published online on the website of the journal Nature Communications.
Researchers claim that this immune strategy is the first attempt to stimulate antibodies against MERS-CoV with multiple structures. These structures are all over the inside and outside of the virus. With this method, the possibility of the virus escaping the immune system through mutation will be greatly reduced. In addition, this study is also the first time this type of vaccine has been tested on an animal model of MERS-CoV, and it is also the first MERS-CoV vaccine that has demonstrated protection against non-human primates. effect.
However, it should be noted that the course of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus infection in primates is much milder than that in humans. Whether this vaccine is suitable for the human body to produce antibodies is currently unclear, and its safety and effectiveness in humans have yet to be verified.