Oxford starts human trials for Covishield nasal vaccine

PUNE: The

University of Oxford

has begun the phase 1 clinical trials on 54 healthy adults to investigate intranasal vaccination with Covishield following positive findings from studies done on hamsters and rhesus macaques, said a group of researchers, including Sarah Gilbert, in a paper published in 'Science Translation Medicine' earlier this week.

Intranasal vaccines are administered through syringes, nasal sprays or aerosol delivery straight into the nasal cavity. The commonly used intranasal

vaccine

is the influenza vaccine. In the two animal studies, the intranasal vaccine has been found to reduce the viral load and lessen the impact on lungs.

Unlike the previous vaccines, this vaccine was tested on hamsters on an early mutation (D614G) of the

nCoV

spike protein and was found to reduce the viral load in nasal swabs.

Dr Nanasaheb Thorat, a Marie-Curie fellow at Oxford, said the intranasal method would be a game-changer with possibly lesser side-effects. He said since the vaccine, which is already in use, has been tried through a different route of administration, it would need fewer approvals.

"Intra-nasal vaccines are easier to administer. Even children can easily be given the vaccine. The latest research shows that the intra-nasal vaccine reduced virus load and helped prevent the spread of infection to the lungs," Thorat told TOI.