US Study: Nasal COVID Vaccine Shows Promise in Phase 1 Trial

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Facts

  • Preliminary results from a Phase 1 clinical trial of a nasal vaccine developed by US-based startup Blue Lake Biotechnology have shown to reduce the risk of symptomatic COVID by 86% over three months when used as a booster dose.1
  • The ongoing trial — which began in August 2021 — comprises 72 participants between the ages of 18-55 who have already received at least two doses of mRNA vaccines, and healthy unvaccinated individuals. Data collection is due to be completed by December.1
  • The preliminary results suggest that the nasal vaccine compares well with current US booster shots, which — according to a study by the US Centers for Disease Control — reduce infections by 43% in people 18-49 over one to two months.1
  • The US has lagged behind other nations in developing nasal vaccines, with only one other – a vaccine from Mount Sinai in New York – entering human trials. India, Iran, Russia, and China have already approved nasal vaccines.1
  • In India, Bharat Biotech recently revealed it can manufacture more than 10M doses of its nasal vaccine, iNCOVACC.2
  • Pres. Joe Biden has scheduled to end the COVID public health emergency on May 11. There are questions about how much vaccine supply will continue to be available past spring and who will be picking up the tab for them if the federal government ceases paying.3

Sources: 1NBC, 2Business today and 3Newsmax.

Narratives

  • Narrative A, as provided by Washington post. Every development of a new, better vaccine is a step in the right direction. Three years into the pandemic, COVID is here to stay, which is why broader solutions like Blue Lake's are the way forward — chasing perpetual variants with targeted vaccines is no longer a viable option.
  • Narrative B, as provided by Forbes. Broader solutions are certainly the goal, but nasal vaccines likely won't meet this. Immunity that comes from infection similarly enters the body through the respiratory tract but only offers a brief period of protection from infection, so nasal sprays would probably have the same impact. The antibodies created by nasal vaccines typically wane quicker than others.

Predictions