The warm COVID-19 vaccine that the Indian Institute of Science developed has proven efficacy against all present COVID-9 variants of concern, a Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization or CSIRO, Australia showed.
According to an IBC World News report, the formulations of vaccine by Mynvax, an IISc-incubated biotech startup, stimulated a strong immune response in mice.
The study, "Immunogenicity and Protective Efficacy of a Highly Thermotolerant, Trimeric SARS-CoV-2 Receptor Binding Domain Derivative", was published in the peer-reviewed journal, ACS Infectious Diseases. Authors showed the vaccine formulations stimulated a strong immune response in mice, shielded hamsters from the virus, and stayed stable at 37 degrees Celsius up to a month and at 100 degrees Celsius for up to 90 minutes.
Remarkably, this can be called a major achievement as most of the available COVID-19 vaccines need refrigeration to keep their efficacy.
Specifically, Oxford-AstraZeneca needs to be kept from two to eight degrees Celsius, while the Pfizer vaccine needs specialized cold storage at -70 degrees Celsius.
Third Wave
The researchers examined blood samples of vaccinated mice sera for efficacy against key variants of COVID-19, including the Delta variant, which fast-track havoc across India during the second wave of the pandemic.
Remarkably, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, World Health Organization chief, has warned the world is currently in the early stages of the third wave of COVID-19 amid the surge of the Delta variant.
According to CSIRO's COVID-19 project leader and co-author, Dr. SS Vasan, their data presented that all this 'warm' COVID-19 vaccine's formulations tested result in antibodies with consistently and effectively neutralizing capabilities COVID-19 variants of concerns including the Alpha, Beta, Gamma, and Delta variants.
IISc-Mynvax Vaccine
The IISc-Mynvax vaccine has been formulated by genetically engineering a domain of the S-Protein, labeled the receptor-binding domain or RBD, or the COVID-19 virus, enabling the virus to associate with the host cell to infect it.
A related BusinessToday.In report said, the S-Protein of the virus is approximately 1,300 amino acids long, although the vaccine focuses only "on a string of 200 amino acids".
According to Rob Grenfall, the Health and Biosecurity Director of CSIRO, a thermostable or "warm vaccine" is crucial for remote or resource-constrained locations with very hot climates which lack dependable cold storage supply chains, which include regional communities in the outback and the Indo-Pacific region of Australia.
The evaluation of CSIRO of the different Mynvax formulations will support selecting the most appropriate candidate for planned human clinical tests in India later this year.
Additionally, to the two organizations, the research involved included researchers from the University of York in the UK, CSIR-Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology or CSIR-IGIB, New Delhi, Translational Health Science and Technology Institute, Faridabad, and Chandigarh-based CSIR-Institute of Microbial Technology.
CSIRO and IISc
Established in 1916, the CSIRO site specified, this organization is Australia's national science agency. It has performed crucial preclinical research for the viral vectored vaccine of Oxford and AstraZeneca known as Covishield in India, DNA vaccine of Inovio Pharmaceuticals, and protein subunit vaccine of IISc-Mynvax against COVID-19.
Meanwhile, established in 1909, the IISC, Bangalore is the premier institute for advanced research and education of India in all branches of science and engineering and is the top-ranked university of the world in the citations for every faculty metric of the QS or Quacquarelli Symonds.
IISc and its spin-out Mynvax Private Limited have been developing their vaccine against COVID-19 with financial backing from the Gates Foundation and the Government of India. More so, Mynvax is developing improved subunit vaccines, too, for influenza.
Related information about the Mynvax warm COVID-19 vaccine is shown on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's YouTube video below:
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