The battle against the coronavirus (COVID-19) involves not only saving the lives of the infected but also protecting the lives of the uninfected as well. A certain vaccine that is known to protect people against tuberculosis (TB) and naturally to improve the immune system is going to be administered on 4,000 healthcare workers battling the pandemic in Australia to see if it is effective.
FILE PHOTO: Employee Philipp Hoffmann, of German biopharmaceutical company CureVac, demonstrates research workflow on a vaccine for the coronavirus (COVID-19) disease at a laboratory in Tuebingen, Germany, March 12, 2020. Picture taken on March 12, 2020.
The discovery of this possibility
It was recently observed that people who have previously administered the tuberculosis vaccine had a much better immune response that has been able to protect them from many different infections. The World Health Organization or WHO has recognized the supposed effects of being better protection against respiratory diseases.
Scientists are currently putting their efforts into deploying the vaccine to about thousands of people to test the hypothesis and see if extra protection from the SARS-CoV-2 and to see if COVID-19 symptom severity is reduced.
The researchers at Melbourne's Murdoch Children's Research Institute will lead the trial and involve about 4,000 health workers from various hospitals around the country. Similar trials are currently being conducted within other countries like the Netherlands, the UK, and also Germany.
The Australian methodology in countering the virus
According to Professor Kathryn North AC, the current Director of the Murdoch Children's Research Institute, "Australian medical researchers have a reputation for conducting rigorous, innovative trials." Explaining that the trial will test the effectiveness of this vaccine against the COVID-19 in hopes of saving the many lives of the healthcare workers and other frontliners.
The vaccine is already in circulation and is given to about 130 million babies every single year to protect them from tuberculosis or TB. This particular shot is used to fight against tuberculosis for decades includes a weakened version of the bacteria Mycobacterium Bovis.
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This specific microbe causes TB in certain animals such as cows and badgers alike. When they are injected into humans, the immune system then trains to fight off the disease, so if ever they are conflicted with TB, they will be well-equipped.
How does the process work?
This process involves training the immune system for it to be able to attack invading pathogens even more intensely than normal. Right before the outbreak of the current coronavirus (COVID-19), researchers were already making steady progress when it came to the investigation of this specific BCG's potential.
There are two studies in adults (one in patients 60 to 70 years of age) that showed that the BCG reduces the respiratory infections by about 80%. There are other studies that have vaccinated children and have resulted in a 10 to 40% reduced risk of certain respiratory infections.
It is still unknown whether the exact mechanism will be effective in the long run, and Australian researchers hope that administering this vaccine would boost the 'innate immunity' to buy enough time for specialized treatment and vaccine to be developed.
