TEXAS A&M SEEKING VOLUNTEERS TO TEST REPURPOSING OF EXISTING VACCINE TO FIGHT COVID-19
Texas A&M University researchers are asking hundreds of frontline medical workers to participate in a clinical trial of a widely used tuberculosis vaccine that could help lessen the effects of COVID-19.
Texas A&M is among a group of institutions seeking to repurpose the Bacillus Calmette–Guérin (BCG) vaccine, which in addition to its use against tuberculosis is also used to treat bladder cancer in the U.S. As COVID-19 spreads, researchers have noticed that in some developing countries where the BCG vaccine is widely used, the morbidity and mortality rates have been noticeably lower.
Researchers are looking to demonstrate that the vaccine mitigates the effects of the virus, leading to fewer hospitalizations and deaths due to COVID-19. Dr. Jeffrey Cirillo, a Regent’s Professor of Microbial Pathogenesis and Immunology at A&M’s Health Science Center, said the vaccine has the broad ability to strengthen one’s immune response, which he called “trained immunity”. He said, while the vaccine will not prevent people from getting infected, it could make a big difference in the next two to three years while a specific vaccine for COVID-19 is developed.
Texas A&M officials say the vaccine could be widely available for use against COVID-19 in just six months, because it has already been proven safe for other uses.
Texas A&M is the first U.S. institution in the clinical trial to be federally cleared to test humans. Healthcare workers will be the first people eligible for the trial, which is planned to start this week. Last week, Texas A&M Chancellor John Sharp offered $2.5 million to make sure Dr. Cirillo’s work can move forward as quickly as possible.
Recruitment of 1,800 volunteers to participate in the trial is already underway in College Station and Houston, and it could be expanded to other areas of the state, as well as Los Angeles and Boston. Medical professionals interested in the trial can contact Dr. Cirillo at jdcirillo@tamu.edu, Gabriel Neal at gneal@tamu.edu, or George Udeani at udeani@tamu.ed.
Click here to view a video about the clinical study.