Development of an inactivated vaccine candidate for SARS-CoV-2

Gao Q; Bao LL; Mao HY; Wang L; Xu KW; Yang MN; Li YJ; Zhu L; Wang N; Lv Z; Gao H; Ge XQ; Kan B; Hu YL; Liu JN; Cai F; Jiang DY; Yin YH; Qin CF; Li J; Gong XJ; Lou XY; Shi W; Wu DD; Zhang HM; Zhu L; Deng W; Li YR; Lu JX; Li CG; Wang XX; Yin WD; Zhang YJ; Qin C

Science, Vol.369, No.6499, 77-+, 2020

DOI10.1126/science.abc1932 Export Citation

Development of an inactivated vaccine candidate for SARS-CoV-2

Gao Q, Bao LL, Mao HY, Wang L, Xu KW, Yang MN, Li YJ, Zhu L, Wang N, Lv Z, Gao H, Ge XQ, Kan B, Hu YL, Liu JN, Cai F, Jiang DY, Yin YH, Qin CF, Li J, Gong XJ, Lou XY, Shi W, Wu DD, Zhang HM, Zhu L, Deng W, Li YR, Lu JX, Li CG, Wang XX, Yin WD, Zhang YJ, Qin C

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has resulted in an unprecedented public health crisis. Because of the novelty of the virus, there are currently no SARS-CoV-2-specific treatments or vaccines available. Therefore, rapid development of effective vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 are urgently needed. Here, we developed a pilot-scale production of PiCoVacc, a purified inactivated SARS-CoV-2 virus vaccine candidate, which induced SARS-CoV-2-specific neutralizing antibodies in mice, rats, and nonhuman primates. These antibodies neutralized 10 representative SARS-CoV-2 strains, suggesting a possible broader neutralizing ability against other strains. Three immunizations using two different doses, 3 or 6 micrograms per dose, provided partial or complete protection in macaques against SARS-CoV-2 challenge, respectively, without observable antibody-dependent enhancement of infection. These data support the clinical development and testing of PiCoVacc for use in humans.