Researchers at the University of Cambridge and spinout DIOSynVax have announced that a new AI-designed universal coronavirus vaccine has cleared its first human clinical trial, in an early test of how artificial intelligence could reshape vaccine development.
The experimental coronavirus vaccine was designed to offer wider protection by targeting shared features across a group of related viruses, rather than focusing on a single circulating strain.
Researchers built it to train the immune system against a wider coronavirus group, which includes SARS-CoV-2, the virus behind COVID-19, SARS and related bat coronaviruses that scientists say could potentially be transmitted to humans.
In its first human test, involving 39 healthy volunteers, the vaccine was found to be safe and caused no significant side effects, while also generating immune responses against the wider coronavirus family, according to the trial findings.
Computer simulations move from lab to human trial
The study represents the first time a vaccine with an active ingredient created entirely through computer simulations has been tested in humans.
Researchers used artificial intelligence and machine learning to design what they describe as an AI-made “super-antigen,” the vaccine component that teaches the immune system to recognize infection.
Instead of focusing on one known strain, the system examined genetic data from related coronaviruses collected through global surveillance and identified features shared across the group.
“This trial proves the safety of an entirely new way of designing vaccines. The technology uses an AI-designed ‘super-antigen’ to provide lasting protection against a broad range of viruses,” researchers said.
Professor Jonathan Heeney, from Cambridge’s Lab of Viral Zoonotics, said the approach could move vaccine development away from constantly reacting to new variants.
“We’ve converted vaccine development from being reactive to being future proof,” Heeney said. “Our vaccines will continue to provide protection against viruses even as they mutate into new strains.”
He added that the technology could help escape “the constant cycle of chasing the virus variants circulating in humans and updating the vaccines to try to catch up.”
Needle-free delivery opens door to wider use
The vaccine’s super-antigen is compatible with several delivery systems. In this trial, it was given as a DNA vaccine through a microfluidic jet, a needle-free method that could benefit people with injection anxiety and may support faster vaccination campaigns in harder-to-reach settings.
Animal studies before the human trial had already shown strong immune responses against multiple coronaviruses, researchers said.
Larger study planned as pandemic risks persist
The vaccine remains at an early stage and will need further testing before any public rollout, with the research paper noting that a larger Phase 2 trial is planned to assess immune responses in a broader and more diverse group of participants.
Professor Saul Faust of the University of Southampton, the trial’s chief investigator, said current vaccine systems struggle because viruses such as influenza, coronaviruses and Ebola continue to evolve.
“This new class of universal vaccines are future-proofed,” Faust said, adding that advancing them before outbreaks begin could save lives, prevent lockdowns and protect economies.
Professor Marian Knight, Scientific Director for NIHR Infrastructure, called the result “a pivotal leap forward” in the search for broad, lasting viral protection.
