The next generation of Covid-19 vaccines in development could come as a pill or a nasal spray and be easier to store and transport than the current handful of shots that form the backbone of the world-wide vaccination effort.
These newer vaccines, from U.S. government labs and companies including Sanofi SA, Altimmune Inc. and Gritstone Oncology Inc., also have the potential to provide longer-lasting immune responses and be more potent against newer and multiple viral variants, possibly helping to head off future pandemics, the companies say.
Vaccines currently authorized for use in the U.S. from Pfizer Inc. and its partner BioNTech SE, as well as Moderna Inc., must be transported and stored at low temperatures and require two doses administered weeks apart.
New vaccines could “constitute some improvement” over those limitations and more easily accommodate vaccination efforts in rural areas, said Gregory Poland, professor and vaccine researcher at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. “You will see second-generation, third-generation vaccines,” he said.
There are 277 Covid-19 vaccines in development globally, of which 93 have entered human testing, according to the World Health Organization. Most of the vaccines in clinical testing are injected, but there are two oral formulations and seven nasal-spray formulations.