A similar concept is behind DNA vaccines. The one developed by Harvard’s Barouch made the news for a successful experiment in monkeys. Other DNA vaccines are already in early human trials, including candidates developed by Oxford University, Johnson & Johnson and the Chinese company CanSino Biologics.
These DNA vaccines use synthetic strings of code for making the spike protein carried by the virus. In some of these, the synthetic DNA is injected alone, while in others, it rides into human cells inside a deactivated cold virus (called an adenovirus). The human cells transcribe the DNA to RNA, and then into the decoy spike protein used to create immunity to the real thing. While the prototype developed by Barouch’s group at Harvard can be given in two shots, the Oxford DNA vaccine and several others that use cold viruses confer immunity with just one shot, says Krieg.
DNA and RNA aren’t our only options. Yet another vaccine concept, made by Dynavax, uses the spike protein itself and stimulates the immune system using a synthetic DNA danger signal—the CpG DNA. These protein-based vaccines would have to be produced in bulk in fermentation vats, which Krieg says is something the biotech industry is equipped to do.
Krieg says all the novel vaccines work through the same well-established scientific principles, and are very likely to be safe. Still, he says, it’s well known that vaccines don’t work as well in the elderly and immunocompromised. Imperfect vaccines could still eradicate the virus through herd immunity but only if the bulk of the population gets vaccinated. Once the technical hurdles are overcome, there will be social hurdles—already, there are movements among anti-vaxxers to resist—but it’s not too soon to plan to surmount them.
Barouch says the ordinarily competitive nature of science has changed, as everyone understands how much is at stake in terms of lives and economic damage. In retrospect, critics might be able to criticize approaches that didn’t work, but right now, we need all the ideas we can get.
This opinion piece was provided by Bloomberg News.