Researchers say Canadians can participate in clinical trials for the new COVID-19 vaccine

Hamilton Infectious Disease Doctors Say Canadians May Be Part Of New Clinical Trials Soon Coronavirus A vaccine under development overseas.

The new DNA-based vaccine could become part of a Phase 2 trial in late 2021 and early 2021 in Canada, says Dr. Mark Lobe of McMaster University.

“It’s a DNA vaccine manufactured using computer modeling and artificial intelligence,” Loeb said. “I think it will be an effective vaccine to protect people from others. COVID-19 (new coronavirus infectious disease) (# If there is no character limit, add parentheses when first appearing.. “

Loeb says the vaccine was developed by a team of British companies called DIOSynVax, founded by Canadian professor Jonathan Heaney who studied at the University of Guelph.

A new vaccine candidate-DIOS-CoVax2-was developed using all known coronavirus gene sequences, including those from bats that host many relatives of the human coronavirus.

According to a release from the University of Cambridge, the components of the vaccine were derived from computer-generated synthetic antigens that could train the human immune system to target key areas of the virus and produce a beneficial antiviral response. is.

The immune response blocks infection from the virus and can remove virus-infected cells from the human body.

Heeney says the key is 3D computer modeling of the structure of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which is built using information about the virus itself and its relatives (SARS, MERS, other coronaviruses).

“In its defense, we’re looking for a flicker of an important part of the virus that can be used to build a vaccine to direct the immune response,” Heeney said in a release. “Ultimately, we aim to create a vaccine that protects not only SARS-CoV-2, but other related coronaviruses that can spill from animals to humans.”

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Heeney further notes that the difference in their models compared to some other current vaccine candidates is their strategy of targeting the viral “docking” structure that connects coronavirus to cells.

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“This is a vaccine that targets a specific part of the virus, which we believe will increase the duration of immunity and increase safety,” Loeb said.

Another important part of the project is the structure of the proposed vaccine. It can be lyophilized as a powder and does not require refrigeration, making it much easier to transport and store.

Loeb says he has contacted Heeney on the project through another scientist, and has “many times” exchanged on protocols to complete Phase 2 and initiate Phase 3 studies.

McMaster’s professor said attending the DIOS-CoVax2 clinical trial is not a continuation for his team of 15 years of extensive clinical trials for the influenza vaccine.

“This was done at more than 30 centers in 12 countries,” Robe said. “So it doesn’t take us much time to expand into a COVID clinical trial.”

The first phase of the trial is currently underway in the UK, and Loeb says about 100 people are involved in a safety trial to look for possible “bad signals” or reactions from patients.

In Phase 2, candidates from Canada may be involved, moving somewhere between 500 and 600 to study the immune response to the vaccine.

“We’re looking at how vaccines affect various aspects of the immune, antibody, and T cell response,” Loeb says.

Hamilton and many other Canadian cities may be assigned for vaccine testing due to the relatively few COVID-19 infections in the country, which says Robe is key in Phase 2 trials ..

“When looking at the immune response, I want to sort out the effects of the vaccine, rather than the natural infections interfering with the results, so it would be better not to have an immune response when the COVID virus is circulating in large numbers Said Loeb.

According to Robe, Phase 3 is expected to involve thousands of candidates in viral hotspots and determine if the subject can actually fight off the virus.