“The vaccine is based on non-infectious virus particles,” he explained. “It’s just a shell of a virus, but it turns out we can use that shell to develop vaccines against all kinds of things. ”
In this case, they attached small pieces of the PCSK9 protein to the surface of these virus particles, Chakkarian said.
“So the immune system mounts a very strong antibody response against this protein, which is involved in controlling cholesterol levels,” he says. “We have seen significant reductions in cholesterol levels of up to 30% in vaccinated animals, which appears to correlate with a reduced risk of heart disease.”
Over the past decade, this vaccine has been tested in mice and monkeys with promising results. Chakkaryan said the next step is to find funding to manufacture the vaccine and move into human clinical trials. Although this process can take years and millions of dollars, it is worth developing a vaccine that is pure, safe, and affordable.
“Given the fact that so many people have high cholesterol levels, it is estimated that if everyone were to take one of these PCSK9 inhibitor therapies, the health care system would be overwhelmed,” Chakkarian said. Ta.
He estimates that the vaccine could cost less than $100 per dose because it is made with a simple and relatively inexpensive bacteria.
“We believe it will cost tens of dollars per dose,” he said, adding that each dose will last nearly a year. “This is a vaccine that we think has the potential to have a global impact. So it’s not just happening in the United States, it’s happening all over the world where heart disease is a significant problem.”
Chakkaryan said his team continues to work hard to make that impact.
“We hope that a vaccine will be available to people within the next 10 years,” he said.
Click here to read the full study.
