Early clinical trials are being undertaken for a potential vaccine against rhinoviruses, which cause the common cold and exacerbations of respiratory conditions such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder (COPD).
A phase 1 clinical trial of APL-10456 in a small group of people was said to have “induced immunity against multiple rhinovirus species”.
Rhinoviruses have been seen as a difficult target for vaccine development because there are around 180 different strains in circulation, across three species, RV-A, RV-B and RV-C. Attempts are now being made to find a vaccine that could give broad protection.
The study is a collaboration between Imperial College London and biopharmaceutical company Apollo Therapeutics, based on initial research led by Professor Sebastian Johnston, Professor of Respiratory Medicine and Allergy from Imperial's National Heart and Lung Institute.
Professor Johnston said that the early study represented a “milestone”.
“We’ve now achieved a significant milestone in the rhinovirus vaccine programme with the first human participants receiving our novel vaccine candidate, with initial results showing it is well tolerated and effective.”
“With so many different strains of rhinovirus currently circulating, developing a vaccine was long thought to be out of reach. It is very encouraging to see this progress into clinical results, which follow years of research and development. Reaching this stage is a testament to the strength of the Apollo-Imperial partnership, and we look forward to learning more from the future studies.”
The randomised, placebo-controlled Phase 1 trial involved 144 healthy adult participants aged 18-54 years, and further research is now expected.
A study in patients with COPD, and vulnerable to exacerbations of respiratory illness, is anticipated to start in the first half of 2027, Imperial College London said.
According to the study, APL-10456 is designed to address this challenge by using a “conserved antigen and Th1-polarizing adjuvants to generate cross-reactive CD4+ and CD8+ T cell responses across rhinovirus species following infection”.
Although most infections cause a mild common cold, rhinoviruses commonly cause flare-ups or exacerbations in people with asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
This can place a significant burden on patients and health services, the researchers said.
Dr. Richard Butt, CSO of Apollo Therapeutics, commented: “With around 180 circulating strains, overcoming the antigenic diversity of rhinovirus has long been considered an intractable scientific challenge. Observing that the data clearly demonstrates a single dose of APL-10456 induces T cell responses against strains representing all three rhinovirus species (RV-A, RV-B and RV-C) is precisely the broad, cross-reactive immunity we set out to achieve.
“This translates our preclinical findings into humans for the first time. We look forward to the Part B readout and to evaluating this approach in the patients with chronic respiratory diseases who need it most.”
