Scientists at Stanford Medicine have unveiled a bold new kind of “universal” vaccine that could one day protect against everything from COVID-19 and the flu to bacterial pneumonia and even common allergens. Instead of targeting a specific virus or bacterium, the nasal spray vaccine supercharges the lungs’ own immune defenses, keeping them on high alert for months. In mice, it slashed viral levels, prevented severe illness, and even blocked allergic reactions.
Exactly. Our immune system is excellent but its immune cell exploration space is on the order of 10^11 potential receptors.
So since RNA viruses in particular can mutate so rapidly, we just use our brains to reduce that by 10+ orders of magnitude and target the antigens we want directly. The end result is the same, biotech is just smarter.
“Know your enemy and know yourself and you need not fear the result of a hundred battles.” ~biotech