The technique uses a harmless virus to help fight a harmful virus. In this case, the harmless virus is used to package and deliver a gene from SARS-CoV-2, the strain of coronavirus that causes COVID-19. The gene therapy vaccine can’t replicate on its own but is potent enough to trigger a beneficial, antivirus response from the immune system.
impacts
When COVID-19 brought the tourism industry to a crashing halt this spring, farmers around the state quickly pivoted to sell the bounty of fruit and vegetables that were at peak harvest.
Students, staff and faculty get swabbed to check for potential COVID-19 infections. Beneath their feet, another testing system churns away, searching for the virus in UF’s wastewater.