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For a month and a half, Bulgarian scientists have been developing an original vaccine against COVID-19 as their approach and means. The idea is that it should be universal and cover all coronaviruses that may appear in the future.
The first tests of the human coronavirus vaccine will begin within 15 months. The team is entirely made up of Bulgarian scientists, BTV reported.
The vaccine will be created by original methods patented in Bulgaria. It will specifically target the Bulgarian population and will take the form of an injection and throat spray.
The head of the scientific work is Associate Professor Dr. Andrey Chorbanov of the Institute of Microbiology of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences. He has more than 60 publications in the field of experimental immunology, twice winner of the Pythagoras Prize in the Biomedical Sciences category. He has worked at the National Center for Infectious and Parasitic Diseases and has been a visiting researcher in the Netherlands, Taiwan, and Hungary.
“The vaccine has a fairly nominal approach in which we will mimic a viral particle. We will take those elements that contain the virus and that are of interest to the immune system, that do not contain genetic information, to place them in a lipid nanoparticle, the carrier for manage these elements next to the cells that will trigger the immune response, “explained Dr. Chorbanov.
He said the idea is to promote viral components directly to the part of the immune system that is responsible for an effective antiviral response.
Experts are waiting for funding for a project that has been approved. However, they are practically already working on it. The first part is to find and identify the elements of interest to the people of Bulgaria. Donors will also be from our country.
Associate Professor Dr. Chorbanov explains that the population in each country reacts differently to the virus, so the scientists’ efforts will aim to make this vaccine initially effective for Bulgarians. It will be tested in real world conditions. The vaccine will be tested in two types of mice before proceeding to the human clinical trial.
“The first model is the so-called humanized model: these are immunodeficient mice, that is, they do not have an immune system. In them, we will transfer cells from humans and, according to that humanized model, in which these human cells will live in mice, we will test the vaccine as we can track what immune response is promoted after animal immunization, “adds the scientist.
The second type of animals are those already developed by various companies. In them, the human gene responsible for the receptor through which the virus penetrates is transferred to a mouse. In this way, the rodent can be used as a model to demonstrate that the virus penetrates the cell and therefore can be an effective vaccine test.
The Institute of Microbiology has its own nursery to house these mice. Dr. Chorbanov’s team will not only work on the experimental work with animals, but will also assemble the final vaccine and perform all immunological tests.
Two more teams are involved in the project. The University of Medicine will provide epitope tests (part of the antigen). The University of Sofia will provide lipid nanoparticles for use in vaccine carriers.
The project was funded by the French institute Louis Pasteur, which announced earlier this week that the French vaccine being developed there will be tested on humans in the summer. The project lasts 15 months, in which a prototype must be made and tested on animals. It is important to demonstrate that it works effectively, adds the expert.
Scientists are currently hoping to receive funds for the approved project to begin.
“The world is built on hope and we also hope to succeed. It is very important to know that Bulgaria has an outstanding position in vaccines over the years,” explained Dr. Chorbanov.
Around 150 COVID-19 vaccines are being developed worldwide. 20 of them, including the Louis Pasteur Institute, are in advanced stages, with 5 already tested on humans.
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