Un vaccino universale contro l'influenza potrebbe presto diventare realtà. Lo spray nasale si basa su un anticorpo scoperto in cammelli, dromedari e lama e nei primi test condotti sui topi ha dimostrato di combattere con successo i virus influenzali di tipo A e B, i due principali responsabili della malattia negli esseri umani.
Il vaccino, messo a punto nella ricerca guidata dall'istituto californiano Scripps e pubblicata sulla rivista Science, funziona come una sorta di coltellino svizzero in miniatura, teoricamente in grado di attaccare 60 diverse varianti del malanno. È noto che i virus influenzali sono in grado di evolversi continuamente, cambiando ogni volta un biomarcatore esposto sulla loro superficie che è il bersaglio degli anticorpi: questo vuol dire che un vaccino creato per combattere una variante, molto probabilmente non andrà bene per le altre ed esaurirà velocemente la sua efficacia. I ricercatori guidati da Nick Laursen hanno messo a punto un nuovo approccio, aggregando insieme in un unico anticorpo "multiuso" tante strutture di anticorpi diverse, riuscendo contemporaneamente a ridurre le dimensioni della proteina fino a scala nanometrica.
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