New Inhalable COVID Vaccine may Boost Antibodies 300-Fold

CanSino Biologics has developed an inhalable coronavirus vaccine that shows an increase of 250- to 300-fold in neutralizing antibody levels as a booster shot.

CanSino Biologics has developed an inhalable COVID-19 vaccine that shows an increase of 250- to 300-fold in neutralizing antibody levels as a booster shot, reported sources.

According to latest lab studies by the Chinese drug maker, the aerosolised inhaled adenovirus Type-5 vector-based Covid-19 vaccine (Ad5-nCoV), taken after completing two doses of inactivated vaccine shots for half a year, is proven to be safe and significantly more immunogenic than taking an inactivated vaccine as a booster, the Global Times reported.

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A heterologous (mix-match vaccine regimen) prime-boost regimen to increase the breadth, intensity and duration of the immune response, more than a homogeneous (same vaccine regimen) booster shot.

In contrast, taking an inactivated vaccine as a booster after two inactivated vaccine shots, increases the neutralising antibodies by only 30 times, it added.

CanSinoBIO co-founder and chief scientific officer Zhu Tao cited a previous study conducted in Turkey whose data showed a booster dose of the mRNA vaccine widely used in Western countries for people administered along with two inactivated doses can increase the neutralising antibodies by about 25 times as compared with a booster dose of the inactivated vaccine again.

Similar clinical trial was conducted by US researchers on a heterologous booster shot regimen with three approved vaccines -- one adenovirus-based vaccine by Johnson & Johnson and two mRNA vaccines by Moderna and Pfizer. The results showed that heterologous regimen enhances immunity.

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Homologous boosters increased neutralising antibody titers 4.2- to 20-fold whereas heterologous boosters increased titers 6.2- to 76-fold, said the research report published recently on pre-print server medRvix, meaning it is not yet peer-reviewed.

So far, at least 13 provinces and regions in China, such as East China's Anhui and Fujian provinces, and Central China's Hubei Province, have initiated programmes to enhance residents' immunity against Covid-19, the report said.

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Coronavirus is a large positive-strand RNA virus that is surrounded by a protein envelope. The virus obtains its name from the S protein spikes on its surface, which resemble a crown. The overall pattern of increasing coronavirus cases is shown to spike up with the “second wave” of COVID-19.

With spiking effects of the second wave of coronavirus, the best way to keep it at bay is to follow COVID-appropriate safety practices like wearing a mask, regularly cleaning your hands, and coughing into a bent elbow or tissue along with physical distancing (6 feet about 2 arm's length), that may help evade the severity of COVID-19 infection.

Source-IANS

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