The multi-pronged search for the Holy Grail of the pandemic: a vaccine
Mar 18, 2020
Stephen Barr needed reagents in his quest to develop a vaccine for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. An associate professor at Western University’s Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, Dr. Barr called colleagues in Switzerland about securing a supply of these substances used for chemical reactions.
“They had what we needed and they put them in the mail. It’s very collegial,” he said. “Everyone is collaborating with everyone and sharing information, and it’s great.” He has received reagents from the U.S. as well, and is collaborating with other researchers in Ontario to source supplies.
Dr. Barr said if he needs an approval from the university, instead of it taking weeks, “I can usually get it within the day.”
About a dozen research groups across the country seek the Holy Grail of solutions to this pandemic: a vaccine. They’re getting generous funding support for their varied approaches to making a safe, effective product. “We don’t know what the right approach is going to be until we do it,” said Roy Duncan, a professor and holder of the Killam Chair in Virology at Dalhousie University.
(…)
Other promising projects in Canada include that of professor Wilfred Jefferies and colleagues at the University of British Columbia, who are working on what they call a “high-performance” vaccine that would require just a small dose to trigger antibodies and long-lasting immunity. Such a vaccine, if effective, could be mass-produced safely, cheaply and efficiently.
Original post: https://www.universityaffairs.ca/news/news-article/the-multi-pronged-search-for-the-holy-grail-of-the-pandemic-a-vaccine/
