New research from the University of Pittsburgh and Pennsylvania State University demonstrates a new type of mRNA vaccine, which improves scalability and adaptability to evolving viruses when compared with current types.
Published in the journal npj Vaccines, the new vaccine addresses two significant challenges found in current mRNA tech: the large quantities of mRNA required, and the constant evolution of target pathogens.
"The virus changes, moving the goal post, and updating the vaccine takes some time," said Suresh Kuchipudi, chair of Infectious Diseases and Microbiology at Pitt Public Health.
To address these issues the team developed a novel proof of concept COVID-19 vaccine which utilizes a "trans-amplifying" mRNA platform, a technique which can save development time by producing replicase sequences in advance. Additionally, after sequencing all known variants of SARS-CoV-2 for commonalities, the team was able to utilize the "consensus spike protein" as the basis for the vaccine antigen.
When tested on mice the new vaccine induced a robust response against numerous strains of the pathogen.
"This has the potential for more lasting immunity that would not require updating, because the vaccine has the potential to provide broad protection," added Kuchipudi. "Additionally, this format requires an mRNA dose 40 times less than conventional vaccines, so this new approach significantly reduces the overall cost of the vaccine."
The information gleaned from this research could lead to more efficient vaccine development pathways for other potentially pandemic causing viruses. "We hope to apply the principles of this lower-cost, broad-protection antigen design to pressing challenges like bird flu.," concluded Kuchipudi.