The ideal version of a Covid vaccine would protect against all strains, known and unknown. But it won't be here soon.
The coronavirus that causes Covid-19 is part of a family of coronaviruses called betacoronaviruses. The coronaviruses that caused SARS and MERSBut betacoronaviruses are just one branch in the broader coronavirus family tree. There are also alphacoronaviruses, gammacoronaviruses and deltacoronaviruses.
Modjarrad, along with his colleagues at Walter Reed, are working to develop a pancoronavirus vaccine. A preclinical study Moderna, in particular, has said its ideal vaccine candidate for the fall would be a bivalent shot that targets the omicron variant as well as the original coronavirus strain in a single shot.of the coronavirus emerge every couple of months, experts argued at the conference that that approach may not be a sustainable strategy long term.
We can't just say"we’re going to develop a pancoronavirus that protects against infection," said In-Kyu Yoon, the acting director of the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, told his colleagues."It’s just too unrealistic, for now." The mRNA shots from Pfizer and Moderna were praised by most doctors, researchers and scientists, in part because they could be tested and manufactured within several months, compared with traditional vaccines, which can take years., meaning many facilities don’t have the capabilities to produce them. A more traditional vaccine, on the other hand, could be easier to scale.