Research roadmap for coronavirus vaccine development

Challenge models

visit roadmap

Challenge models

Research Question

Develop optimal challenge models to understand disease dynamics, transmission, and immune responses in animals to improve vaccines and treatments

Developing challenge models that accurately represent how different species react to coronavirus infections in terms of immune response, viral clearance, and immunopathology
Creating a standardized challenge model that can be applied to multiple species – there may already be good models available, but there is a lack of tools/assays for good readouts of them. Creating challenge models that can effectively evaluate vaccine efficacy in diverse species, given differences in immune system function, viral evolution, and vaccine response. Is there an available bat challenge model?
Risk of coronaviruses mutating in animal hosts and generating new variants with potential zoonotic spillover or enhanced transmission

Standardized challenge models that allow easy comparative vaccine performance study
Standardizing certain aspects of the challenge model (e.g., virus dose, route of administration) while adapting others (e.g., species-specific endpoints and biomarkers)
More cross-species vaccine trials and multi-pathogen vaccines that target conserved viral components across species
Research into alternative or more representative animal models, including genetically modified animals (bovinized or porcinized mice) or organ-on-a-chip technologies
Developing safe, field-compatible challenge models that can be performed without spreading the virus into animal populations or ecosystems

More research into the immune responses of various species is needed, particularly in wildlife species that are less well studied. Cross-species studies that explore viral infection patterns in a variety of animals are necessary to determine which species are susceptible and the disease progression in these species