Nasal Vaccine Proves to be More Effective than Injection

Aug 22, 2020 by CenTrial



For those of us who hate needles, a COVID-19 vaccine is being developed that is delivered by a nasal spray. It has even proven to be more effective than intramuscular injections of the vaccine.

Currently, the testing has been conducted on mice, but its success has prompted investigators to plan testing in nonhuman primates and then in humans to see if it is safe and effective in preventing coronavirus infection.

Because COVID-19 often takes hold in the nose, targeting the nose as a vaccine site seems to make sense.

“We were happily surprised to see a strong immune response in the cells of the inner lining of the nose and upper airway — and a profound protection from infection with this virus,” said senior author Michael S. Diamond, MD, PhD, the Herbert S. Gasser Professor of Medicine and a professor of molecular microbiology, and of pathology and immunology. “These mice were well protected from disease. And in some of the mice, we saw evidence of sterilizing immunity, where there is no sign of infection whatsoever after the mouse is challenged with the virus.”

When the vaccine was administered via injection it failed to prevent infection in the nose and lungs, but when delivered through the nose it was effective.

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