tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
Front Immunol
. 2025 Feb 7:16:1514845.
doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2025.1514845. eCollection 2025. Adjuvanted subunit intranasal vaccine reduces SARS-CoV-2 onward transmission in hamsters
Yongjun Sui[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Swagata Kar[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Bhavna Chawla[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Tanya Hoang[SUP] 1 [/SUP], YuanKai Yu[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Shannon M Wallace[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Hanne Andersen[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Jay A Berzofsky[SUP] 1 [/SUP]
Affiliations
Introduction: Most COVID-19 vaccine trials have focused on recipient protection, not protection of their contacts, a critical need. As a subunit intranasal COVID-19 vaccine reduced nasopharyngeal virus more than did an intramuscular (IM) vaccine, we hypothesized that this vaccine might reduce onward transmission to others.
Methods: We vaccinated hamsters with either the IM-administrated licensed mRNA vaccine twice or one dose of mRNA IM followed by adjuvanted subunit intranasal vaccine. 24 hours after SARS-CoV-2 challenge, these animals were housed with naïve recipients in a contactless chamber that allows airborne transmission.
Results: Onward airborne transmission was profoundly blocked: the donor and recipients of the intranasal vaccine-boosted group had lower oral and lung viral loads (VL), which correlated with mucosal ACE2 inhibition activity. Notably, in this head-to-head comparison of COVID-19 booster vaccines on SARS-CoV-2 onward transmission, we found that statistically significant viral reduction in the lung tissues and oral swabs was observed only in the intranasal S1 nanoparticle vaccine-boosted group, but not in the systemic mRNA vaccine-boosted group, suggesting the superior protection of this intranasal vaccine, which could act as an attractive vaccine booster candidate to complement the current licensed systemic vaccines.
Discussion: Overall, our study strongly supports the use of the intranasal vaccine as a boost to protect not only the vaccinated person, but also people exposed to the vaccinated person, a key public health goal.
Keywords: SARS-CoV-2 vaccine; adjuvant subunit vaccine; mRNA vaccine; mucosal vaccine; onward transmission.
. 2025 Feb 7:16:1514845.
doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2025.1514845. eCollection 2025. Adjuvanted subunit intranasal vaccine reduces SARS-CoV-2 onward transmission in hamsters
Yongjun Sui[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Swagata Kar[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Bhavna Chawla[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Tanya Hoang[SUP] 1 [/SUP], YuanKai Yu[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Shannon M Wallace[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Hanne Andersen[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Jay A Berzofsky[SUP] 1 [/SUP]
Affiliations
- PMID: 39981227
- PMCID: PMC11841495
- DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2025.1514845
Introduction: Most COVID-19 vaccine trials have focused on recipient protection, not protection of their contacts, a critical need. As a subunit intranasal COVID-19 vaccine reduced nasopharyngeal virus more than did an intramuscular (IM) vaccine, we hypothesized that this vaccine might reduce onward transmission to others.
Methods: We vaccinated hamsters with either the IM-administrated licensed mRNA vaccine twice or one dose of mRNA IM followed by adjuvanted subunit intranasal vaccine. 24 hours after SARS-CoV-2 challenge, these animals were housed with naïve recipients in a contactless chamber that allows airborne transmission.
Results: Onward airborne transmission was profoundly blocked: the donor and recipients of the intranasal vaccine-boosted group had lower oral and lung viral loads (VL), which correlated with mucosal ACE2 inhibition activity. Notably, in this head-to-head comparison of COVID-19 booster vaccines on SARS-CoV-2 onward transmission, we found that statistically significant viral reduction in the lung tissues and oral swabs was observed only in the intranasal S1 nanoparticle vaccine-boosted group, but not in the systemic mRNA vaccine-boosted group, suggesting the superior protection of this intranasal vaccine, which could act as an attractive vaccine booster candidate to complement the current licensed systemic vaccines.
Discussion: Overall, our study strongly supports the use of the intranasal vaccine as a boost to protect not only the vaccinated person, but also people exposed to the vaccinated person, a key public health goal.
Keywords: SARS-CoV-2 vaccine; adjuvant subunit vaccine; mRNA vaccine; mucosal vaccine; onward transmission.