Reduce 100 times the vaccine dose and still be effective

Just by adding a natural immunity in the body, the effect of the vaccine will not change even if the dose is reduced by up to 100 times. This is a new idea for Canadian scientists, which is important in the fight against bird flu, SARS and tuberculosis.

Only a small amount of vaccine is needed, the effect of resistance will not change. (Photo: AFP / VNE) The natural immune substance is a molecule called TAP, which acts as a "signal gun" to help the immune system determine its target of attack. University of British Columbia, Vancouver, found that when adding TAP to vaccines, the effectiveness of the drug did not change even when the dose was reduced 100 times compared to the standard.

Lead researcher Wilfred Jefferies tested the new technique on mice and observed that the immune response appeared, helping to keep these mice safe from rabies, measles and smallpox.

TAP molecule is responsible for bringing amino acid chains into cells. In cancer cells, TAP is mysteriously disabled and consequently the immune system cannot identify the target of attack.

"The TAP model can be applied to many types of viruses and promises to bring progress in developing new vaccines and improving existing ones," the research team confirmed.

The Jefferies initiative is considered particularly important at the moment, when the world is holding its breath before a pandemic of bird flu, if the mutant H5N1 virus becomes a human-to-human strain. In addition, low doses also help reduce the toxicity of certain vaccines, especially smallpox and anthrax, and help weakened immune systems, such as those of AIDS patients, get better. The team is about to release a sample of vaccine samples to proceed to a clinical trial within the next 2 years.

Jefferies first realized the potential of TAP after detecting that the molecule is disabled in cancer cells (the reason why the body cannot fight cancer cells). When activating TAP into a sick cell, Jefferies realizes that his immune system suddenly becomes flexible and attacks his target.

"TAP is an important molecule in the formation of an immune response. Its presence will help the body attack the virus accurately," Jefferies said. However, the team is not sure why the TAP molecule is "turned off" in cancer cells.

My Linh (according to AFP)