SEATTLE — Researchers at the University of Washington (UW) School of Medicine in Seattle are looking for volunteers to participate in a COVID-19 vaccine booster trial.
The volunteers will be participating in the second stage of a phase 1 vaccine trial, which is designed to test the safety and tolerability of a new vaccine, as well as a person's immune response, according to the UW.
The first stage involved giving the experimental vaccines to unvaccinated volunteers. In this second stage, the vaccines will be given as booster shots to people who have already been fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
The vaccine candidates were developed by Gritstone bio, headquartered in Emeryville, California, according to the UW.
Unlike current COVID-19 vaccines, the trial vaccines seek to elicit an immune response to multiple coronavirus proteins in addition to the spike protein that is targeted by currently available vaccines made by Moderna, Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson, the UW said.
“With the emergence of the delta and other COVID-19 variants, we need to stay ahead of the virus by developing effective vaccines that will aid in the prevention of all strains of COVID,” said Dr. Anna Wald, director of the UW Medicine Virology Research Clinic and head the UW School of Medicine's allergies and infectious diseases division.
To enroll in the trial, participants must be age 18 or older, healthy, without significant allergies, without a history of prior SARS-CoV-2 infection and have been vaccinated against COVID-19 at least four months prior to enrollment.
Persons over age 60 are encouraged to participate.
Participants will be asked to:
- Make nine to 14 or more in-person clinic visits and also will receive one to two telephone check-ins with study staff over 12 to 14 months.
- Receive one or two injections of investigational vaccine.
- Have blood drawn several times to monitor safety and to see whether the vaccine results in an immune response.
- Keep track of how they’re feeling after the injection.
Interested participants should contact the UW Medicine Virology Research Clinic: gritstone@uw.edu or 206-520-4340
