Scientists test universal vaccine for cold, flu, Covid and allergies

The world is a significant step closer to a universal vaccine for cold, flu, Covid and allergies, scientists believe. Experts at Stanford Medicine ⁠in the US have developed a universal ⁠vaccine that could be given as a nasal spray and ⁠could protect against a wide range of respiratory viruses, bacteria and allergy triggers. Although the study, published in the journal Science, was in mice, they said the vaccine offered broad protection in the lungs for several months. Vaccinated mice were... AdvertisementScienceWorldUnited States & CanadaScientists test universal vaccine for cold, flu, Covid and allergiesThe nasal spray works to protect the lungs of mice, and could eventually replace multiple jabs if shown to be effective and safe for humansReading Time:2 minutesWhy you can trust SCMPdpaPublished: 7:46am, 20 Feb 2026The world is a significant step closer to a universal vaccine for cold, flu, Covid and allergies, scientists believe.Experts at Stanford Medicine ⁠in the US have developed a universal ⁠vaccine that could be given as a nasal spray and ⁠could protect against a wide range of respiratory viruses, bacteria and allergy triggers.Although the study, published in the journal Science, was in mice, they said the vaccine offered broad protection in the lungs for several months.AdvertisementVaccinated mice were protected against Covid and other coronaviruses, Staph (which can infect the skin and cause sepsis), Acinetobacter baumannii (which can cause infections in the blood, urinary tract, lungs or wounds), ‌and house dust mites.If translated into humans, such a vaccine could replace multiple jabs every year for winter respiratory infections. It could also potentially work against new pandemic bugs.the researchers may have hit on a new concept for vaccination, if the results in mice ‌are confirmed ‌in future studies in humansBrendan Wren, professor of microbial pathogenesisBali Pulendran, director of the Institute for Immunity, Transplantation and Infection at Stanford Medicine and lead author, said: “I think what we have is a universal vaccine against diverse respiratory threats …AdvertisementSelect VoiceSelect Speed0.8x0.9x1.0x1.1x1.2x1.5x1.75x00:0000:001.00x