“Breathe, you are vaccinated!” This sentence could become standard within a few years following the results of a European research program coordinated by the National Institute of Health (Inserm). Researchers have developed a vaccine to fight against whooping cough, given by a few drops in the nose. The results of phase I clinical trials have been published in the journal PLOS ONE.
Whooping cough is a disease unjustly forgotten, explains Camille Locht, director of the Lille Infection and Immunity Center and pilot of the project, while it kills around 300,000 children per year worldwide. Her upsurge would even be worrying since 2010 in some countries such as the United States, Australia, England, the Netherlands and France.
No side effects
The study’s authors successfully tested for the first time in humans a live bacterial vaccine specially designed for nasal administration. “This original mode of administration will make the vaccine accessible to as many people as possible and at a lower cost” adds Camille Locht. Phase I human trials took place in Sweden, where vaccination had been abandoned for several years due to ineffectiveness.
The aim of this trial was to identify the possible side effects, evaluate the intake of the vaccine in the nasal mucosa and observe the immune response. After six months of follow-up of the vaccinated patients and the analysis of 60,000 data points, the results showed no side effects compared to placebo, even at high doses.
“What is particularly interesting was that a single nasal administration could induce an immune response which was maintained for at least six months, that is to say as long as the study” comments Camille Locht. The researchers plan to test higher doses of the vaccine, their goal being to improve its sensitivity over time and to be able to develop it on an industrial scale. This project also proved that the nasal vaccine can be applied to other respiratory infections.
