New paths taken in push to develop virus vaccine

LONDON -- In the global race to beat back the coronavirus pandemic, scientists in Britain, Germany, China and the United States are pushing to develop, and possibly manufacture, doses of vaccine in a completely new way.

This promising -- but unproven -- new generation of vaccine technologies is based on deploying a tiny snip of genetic code called messenger RNA to trigger the immune system. It has never before been approved for use.

But almost overnight, these cutting-edge RNA vaccine efforts have leaped forward as top candidates to fight covid-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. Some developers plan to have tens of millions of doses ready by the end of the year.

Elegant in theory, efficacious in the laboratory but untested in the real world, the possible RNA vaccines are especially attractive because they might be cheaper, easier and faster to manufacture on a massive scale. At least one team boasts that it could partner with producers in developing countries to provide millions of vials for as little as $5 each.

More than 150 potential vaccines are now being developed by multinational pharmaceutical companies, academic groups and government laboratories around the world, many through traditional protocols used to make flu and other vaccines for decades.

At least 17 teams are now testing their potential vaccines in humans -- and at least five of these are betting on RNA vaccines.

The RNA teams have been among the first out of the gate because the vaccines can be rapidly designed on computers, using just the genetic sequence of the coronavirus that was shared online in January.

[CORONAVIRUS: Click here for our complete coverage » arkansasonline.com/coronavirus]

The stakes, and risks, are enormous.

"This is the greatest science experiment in vaccinology that's ever been done," said Andrew Ward, a structural biologist at the Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, Calif. "It's literally testing all the different technologies, and it's going to be cool to see how this all shakes out."

The RNA vaccines under study come from a small laboratory at Imperial College London, from the People's Liberation Army Academy of Military Sciences in China, and from three large pharmaceutical companies -- Pfizer, Moderna and CureVac -- and their partners.

They're competing alongside groups pursuing a slew of other methods, including the use of inactivated or killed virus or bits of the virus -- a traditional strategy used against seasonal flu and other pathogens. Others harness harmless viruses to ferry distinctive pieces of the coronavirus machinery into cells.

Though never deployed in humans outside clinical trials, the RNA research is being backed by hundreds of millions of dollars in investment, fueled by the urgency to crack the covid code. Each team is seeking the prize of being first to a vaccine, while guaranteeing their own populations will get early access.

It's a high-wire, high-price gamble on 21st-century, computer-aided medicine.

Among the first to begin human trials is a self-amplifying RNA vaccine developed by the British professor Robin Shattock, 57, who in his college days at North East Surrey College of Technology wasn't very good at math or science and thought maybe he'd like to be a rock star instead.

Within days of the coronavirus emerging in Wuhan, China, and the genetic sequence of the virus being published, Shattock and his small team at Imperial College London went to work.

In January, February and March, Shattock couldn't get his phone calls answered by top British officials. He spent days of precious lab time applying and cajoling for funding to move his vaccine forward, allies said.

Then British Health Secretary Matt Hancock decided to back Shattock and his vaccine, and $50 million poured in.

In the past week, at a clinic in London that cannot be named for security reasons, the first nine volunteers got a jab from the Imperial College vaccine.

"They seem to have responded well," Shattock said.

Another 300 volunteers will receive the vaccine over the summer. Imperial College hopes to launch a 6,000-person trial in October.

"We think that just around the corner there will be a sea change in the way that vaccines are developed and manufactured," Shattock said. "I think we're just on the cusp of that."

If all goes well, a U.S. trial of a potential RNA vaccine this month will enter the crucial third phase to measure how well it protects against infection and sickness. It's the gold standard of double-blind controlled studies, involving thousands of volunteers in multiple countries. Half get the candidate vaccine and half get a placebo.

Each vaccine technology has advantages and trade-offs -- such as the speed and flexibility of the RNA platform balanced against the lack of experience in using it in large human populations.

Vaccines that might take longer to make could offer a stronger immune response.

The usefulness of some vaccines could be limited in the developing world if they require extensive refrigeration. And questions remain about how long any of the potential vaccines might be effective, as well as whether people might need booster shots.

"No one thinks there's going to be a single silver bullet," said Deborah Fuller, a microbiologist at the University of Washington.

That's because multiple treatments might be needed to meet the number of doses required around the world -- and it's likely that vaccines will have different profiles.

The fastest to be developed might not be the most effective. Or one might work better in older people than younger.

"As a collective team, they're going to be able to battle this pandemic together," Fuller said.

Upcoming Events