[Image courtesy of Production Perig/Adobe Stock]
The current mRNA vaccines from Moderna (Nasdaq:MRNA) and Pfizer (NYSE:PFE)/BioNTech (Nasdaq:BNTX) stimulate the production of neutralizing antibodies that bind to the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2.But there is a novel mRNA vaccine that activates T cells to attack cells infected with the virus. Developed by researchers at MIT and other institutions, the new vaccine could sidestep the need for updated boosters based on currently circulating variants.
In a preclinical study published in Frontiers in Immunology, the T-cell vaccine successfully attacked cells infected with the virus rather than activating the part of the immune system that releases neutralizing antibodies. In addition, the researchers tested the vaccine in humanized mice and successfully generated both CD8+ (cytotoxic) and CD4+ (helper) T-cell responses.
This new MIT-T-COVID vaccine could …