Vaccine on the Block: RSV
- Katherine Zhang
- Jan 22, 2023
- 2 min read
In another exciting innovation for the vaccine world, a new vaccine may be on the way. As news reports revealed just a few days ago, late RSV vaccination trials have been very promising, indicative of a potential vaccine release in the near future.
What even is RSV?
Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infection--better known as RSV--is a respiratory viral infection that manifests itself with symptoms similar to a common cold. However, for individuals with weaker immune systems, such as young children and older adults, RSV cases may have serious consequences. For instance, the CDC reports that RSV is the nation’s most common cause of pneumonia and bronchitis in infants.
A Vaccine
For decades, drugmakers and pharmaceutical companies have attempted to create preventative measures for the potentially fatal virus. Many of these measures have failed, until now.
In fact, there may be up to five potential RSV vaccines that will become viable for eventual distribution. At the moment, both the GSK and Pfizer pharmaceutical companies have found success rates of 60-80% in preventing symptoms. These vaccines are similar in that they rely upon traditional protein-based vaccination technology, wherein the virus’ proteins are grown in labs and administered through the vaccine to stimulate an immune response.
However, in just the past few days, a Moderna vaccine has also passed critical trials. Unlike the other two vaccines, the Moderna approach to RSV utilizes mRNA techniques (See ‘A-B-C-D-mRNA?’ to learn more) similarly found in COVID-19 vaccines.
The other two competitors racing to create the next vaccine are Johnson & Johnson as well as a Denmark company--Bavarian Nordic. The vaccines created by all of these companies look to protect the older population, though notably Pfizer is set to launch a maternal vaccine to target unborn children.
Why is this important?
In the past few months, RSV cases and risks have spiked much more than usual. First, there were unusually high summer numbers, which was followed by similarly high hospitalizations in the fall.
The CDC reported that about five out of 100,000 people were hospitalized this November--a rate four times higher than in the previous year. In combination with the continual effects of COVID-19 and the flu, the importance of mitigating RSV is crucial to lighten the load on health care workers and systems.
Stay tuned for more updates on this developing topic!
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