Safety and immunogenicity of a heterologous booster with an RBD virus-like particle vaccine following two- or three-dose inactivated COVID-19 vaccine (preprint)

Background: Reduced protection against COVID-19 due to the waning vaccine-induced immunity over time and emergence of immune-evading SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern (VOCs) indicate the need for vaccine boosters. LYB001 is an innovative recombinant SARS-CoV-2 vaccine which displays a repetitive array of the Spike glycoprotein's receptor binding domain (RBD) on a virus-like particle (VLP) vector to boost the immune system, produced using a Covalink plug-and-display protein binding technology. Methods: The safety and immunogenicity of LYB001 as a heterologous booster at an interval of 6-12 months was assessed in 119 participants receiving a booster with (1) 30g LYB001 (I-I-30L) or CoronaVac (I-I-C), (2) escalated dose of 60g LYB001 (I-I-60L) or CoronaVac in a ratio of 2:1 after two-dose primary series of inactivated COVID-19 vaccine in part 1 of this study, or (3) 30g LYB001 (I-I-I-30L) after three-dose primary series of inactivated COVID-19 vaccine in part 2 of this study. Results: A well-tolerated reactogenicity profile was observed for LYB001 as a heterologous booster, with adverse reactions predominantly being mild in severity and transient. The peak neutralizing antibody response was observed at 28 days after booster, with GMT (95%CI) against prototype SARS-CoV-2 being 1237.8 (747.2, 2050.6), 554.3 (374.6, 820.2), 181.9 (107.6, 307.6) and 1200.2 (831.5, 1732.3) in the I-I-30L, I-I-60L, I-I-C, and I-I-I-30L groups, respectively. LYB001 also elicited a cross-neutralizing antibody response against the BA.4/5 strain, dominant during the study period, with GMT being 201.1 (102.7, 393.7), 63.0 (35.1, 113.1), 29.2 (16.9, 50.3) and 115.3 (63.9, 208.1) at 28 days after booster in the I-I-30L, I-I-60L, I-I-C, and I-I-I-30L groups, respectively. Additionally, RBD-specific IFN-{gamma}, IL-2, IL-4 secreting T cells, as measured by ELISpot assay, dramatically increased (more than 10 times versus baseline) at 14 days after a single LYB001 booster. Conclusions: Our data confirm the favorable safety and immunogenicity profile of the LYB001 vaccine when used as a heterologous booster, and support the continued clinical development of this promising candidate that utilize VLP platform to provide protection against COVID-19.

Pharmaceutical services and monitoring strategies for patients with new type of Coronavirus pneumonia complicated by diabetes

New coronavirus pneumonia is menacing, and patients with new coronavirus pneumonia combined with other underlying diseases are more at risk. Glycemic control level directly affects the body's immune response and body state. Its low immune status is extremely likely to increase the risk of illness. Infected patients are more likely to aggravate the infection and further cause cytokine storms. Therefore, patients with new type of coronavirus infection and type 2 diabetes need better blood glucose control and management while treating new type of coronavirus infection. This article combines the research on the rational use of diabetes and analyzes the characteristics of the existing clinical data of COVID-19 to explore the pharmacological practice mode and medication monitoring strategy of this special patient. It is hoped to provide COVID-19 patients with diabetes with a more optimized and reasonable medication regimen and improve the clinical medication level.

Understanding the Anticontagion Process and Reopening of China during COVID-19 via Coevolution Network of Epidemic and Awareness

The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic is intensifying all over the world, but some countries, including China, have developed extensive and successful experience in controlling this pandemic. In this context, some questions arise naturally: What can countries caught up in the epidemic learn from China’s experience? In regions where the outbreak is under control, what would lead to a resurgence of the epidemic? To address these issues, we investigate China’s experience in anticontagion interventions and reopening process, focusing on the coevolution of epidemic and awareness during COVID-19 outbreak. Through an empirical analysis based on large-scale data and simulation based on a metapopulation and multilayer network model, we ascertain the impact of human movements and awareness diffusion on the epidemic, elucidate the inherent patterns and effective interventions of different epidemic prevention methods, and highlight the crunch time of each measure. The results are also employed to analyze COVID-19 evolution in other countries so as to find unified rules in complex situations around the world and provide advice on anticontagion and reopening policies. Our findings explain some key mechanisms of epidemic prevention and may help the epidemic analysis and decision-making in various countries suffering from COVID-19.