DNA particles that mimic viruses hold promise as vaccines

Using a DNA-based nanoparticle carrying viral proteins, researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (including the MIT Institute for Soldier Nanotechnologies), the Ragon Institute (of Massachusetts General Hospital, MIT, and Harvard University), and Washington University School of Medicine have created a vaccine that provokes a strong antibody response against SARS-CoV-2. The vaccine, which has been tested in mice, consists of a DNA nanoparticle that carries many copies of a viral antigen. Most previous work on this type of vaccine has relied on protein nanoparticles, but the proteins used in those vaccines tend to generate an unnecessary immune response that can distract the immune system from the target. In the mouse study, the researchers found that the DNA nanoparticle itself does not induce an immune response, allowing the immune system to focus its antibody response on the target antigen.