Coronavirus, tests started on 5 Italian vaccines

Preclinical tests of five coronavirus vaccines have started in Italy. They are all conducted by the biotech company Takis, the results are expected in mid-May and human trials may start in the autumn. The company's CEO, Luigi Aurisicchio said this to ANSA.

The vaccines are based on different regions of the Spike protein, the main weapon with which the virus attacks human respiratory cells.

The tests, authorized by the Ministry of Health and conducted on mice, provide for a first injection, followed by a recall. The results will then be analyzed by Takis and the Spallanzani Institute. These assessments will help identify the best vaccine candidate for clinical trials: "We will select the one that proves most potent in inducing anti-Covid 19 antibodies," Aurisicchio observed. If the results are satisfactory, the vaccine could be tested on humans in the autumn.

The five vaccines were obtained from the fragments of the genetic material of the virus that correspond to as many regions of the protein S, or Spike (tip, claw), which the coronavirus SarsCoV2 uses to attach to the cells of the human respiratory system to penetrate inside them .

All five vaccines are based on the technology called electroporation, which consists of the injection into the muscle followed by a very short electrical impulse which facilitates the entry of the vaccine into the cells and activates the immune system.

The company managed to start the preclinical experimentation without external funding, but now in order to continue the research it has launched a crowdfunding campaign that aims to quickly collect the amount necessary to access the next stages of vaccine development.