Research at Advanced Photon Source laid the groundwork for effective COVID-19 vaccines
There is light at the end of the COVID-19 pandemic tunnel. Several vaccines against the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19 are now in clinical trials, with one developed by Pfizer/BioNTech already having been approved for emergency use in the United States. This has been the fastest development and rollout of any vaccine in history, starting with the first gene sequence released in January. (The previous record was held by the mumps vaccine, which took four years.)
But while this may seem like an overnight success story, the speed and effectiveness of these new vaccines can be in part attributed to the decades of research into infectious diseases that preceded the COVID-19 outbreak. Case in point: five of the vaccines, including those developed by Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna, contain genetic mutations that increase their effectiveness, mutations based upon work dating back more than 10 yea
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IMAGE: Data taken at the APS shows the neutralizing antibody D25 binding to the F protein of the Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV). This binding stabilizes the protein in its prefusion form.. view more
Credit: Jason McLellan
There is light at the end of the COVID-19 pandemic tunnel. Several vaccines against the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19 are now in clinical trials, with one developed by Pfizer/BioNTech already having been approved for emergency use in the United States. This has been the fastest development and rollout of any vaccine in history, starting with the first gene sequence released in January. (The previous record was held by the mumps vaccine, which took four years.)
More than a decade of virus research at the APS laid the groundwork for more effective COVID-19 vaccines medicalxpress.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from medicalxpress.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.