Aussie Researchers are Publishing For a Global Vaccine For Covid-19

 Australian medical researchers are working to develop a booster vaccine that will deal with the growing number of COVID-19 strains.

Announcing the potential breakthrough at a public conference at the Westmead Institute of Medical Research (WIMR) on Friday as part of the Sydney Science Festival, senior entomologist Professor Sarah Palmer said that It aims to treat latent symptoms with a single vaccine. Of all types of SARS-CoV-2.

The principle behind the attack range is based on the team's previous work analyzing another epidemic, the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).

Before the COVID-19 outbreak, researchers developed a computer algorithm that allowed them to identify essential regions of the HIV protein that are shared between different forms or subtypes of the virus.

"These areas are important for the survival of the HIV virus," he said, otherwise the protein would break down, Palmer said.

Once the region is identified, a ribonucleic acid (mRNA) vaccine is developed. A type of immune cell known as a "killer T cell" is "studied and able to activate," the virologist said.

The mRNA vaccine will "teach" killer T cells to recognize and eliminate HIV-infected cells.

This is a new method used to fight new diseases, where researchers use computers to identify proteins between different organisms based on information from SARS-CoV-2.

The team found two regions, one is a unique protein found in all forms of COVID-19, and the other is a nucleocapsid protein that allows the virus to multiply rapidly.

Palmer said VIMR researchers work closely with multidisciplinary teams from various Australian institutions, including Monash University.

Pharmaceutical biologists at Monash University have won an award for developing an mRNA vaccine that can train killer T cells to target common areas of SARS-CoV-2 and eliminate infected cells.

Palmer acknowledged that there is "a long way to go" before a vaccine is available to the public, but early signs are very promising.

Initial tests have shown that the vaccine is effective and will be tested in mice in the future.