动物实验,MERS z-bo 2020-08-20 593

　　Researchers from the National Institutes of Health in Maryland report that they have developed the potential of a Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) vaccine. In experiments with mice and rhesus monkeys, the new vaccine proved its ability to immunize against the Jordanian N3 virus strain.

　　Since the Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus was discovered in 2012, the number of cases has exceeded 1,000, and the death toll has exceeded 400. Little is known about how this virus spreads. Research on the virus host has not been confirmed, and there is no effective treatment for respiratory diseases that cause the virus to cause severe symptoms in humans.

　　In a new study, Canyon Biao (transliteration) of the National Institutes of Health and Bonny Graham and their team infected animals with DNA encoding this viral protein. With this shortened viral protein, it can be used in rats. A series of antibodies against the virus were stimulated in the monkeys, and finally the experimental animals were immunized and protected from pneumonia caused by the Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus. Related papers have been published online on the Nature Communications website. The researchers said that this immune strategy is the first attempt to stimulate antibodies against the multi-structural MERS-CoV virus. These structures are both inside and outside the virus. Using this method can greatly reduce the chance of the virus escaping the immune system due to mutations. In addition, this study is the first example of such a vaccine tested in an animal model of MERS-CoV, and the first MERS-CoV vaccine to prove its protective effect on non-human primates.

　　However, please note that the MERS-CoV infection process in primates is much milder than in humans. It is not clear whether the vaccine is suitable for producing antibodies in the human body, and its safety and effectiveness have not been confirmed.