A "needle-free" Covid-19 vaccine has been developed by a Cambridge scientist which could help defeat future variants and other coronaviruses.
Professor Jonathan Heeney, from the University of Cambridge, developed the vaccine which uses a jet of air to push it through the skin rather than a needle.
It is now set for a trial run by the University of Southampton to test its effectiveness.
Prof Heeney believes the "innovative" vaccine could be a game-changer in the fight against both Covid-19 and future coronavirus strains.
It is also designed to adapt to fight mutations of the virus, which could help against future variants causing alarm, as Omicron has done, reports Cambridgeshire Live.
Prof Heeney said: “As new variants emerge and immunity begins to wane we need newer technologies.
“It’s vital that we continue to develop new generation vaccine candidates ready to help keep us safe from the next virus threats.
“Our vaccine is innovative, both in terms of the way it primes the immune system to respond with a broader protective response to coronaviruses, and how it is delivered.
“Crucially, it is the first step towards a universal coronavirus vaccine we are developing, protecting us not just from Covid-19 variants but from future coronaviruses.”
Saul Faust, clinical chief investigator and director of the NIHR Southampton Clinical Research Facility, said: “This isn’t simply ‘yet another’ coronavirus vaccine as it has both Covid-19 variants and future coronaviruses in its sights.
“This technology could give wide-ranging protection to huge numbers of people worldwide.”
While most existing Covid-19 vaccines use the sequence of the RNA for the spike protein from the first samples of the virus found in January 2020, the DIOSvax technology used for the new vaccine aims to predict how the virus could mutate, allowing it to target emerging variants.
Volunteers from the Southampton area who have had two doses of an existing vaccine but not a booster are being sought for the trial for which they will be paid £785.
