New US study shows nasal vaccine could slash Covid infections

American researchers may have found a way to reduce how easily Covid-19 spreads, and it’s in the form of a nasal spray. In a study undertaken by academics from Yale University found their nasal vaccine called Prime and Spike may be an effective booster, although more trials will be needed. The research came less than a month after AstraZeneca’s trial of the Oxford vaccine in nasal form fell through.Since Covid reared its head, researchers have sought to create a nasal vaccine. The usual intramuscular vaccines have been shown to be effective at preventing hospitalisations, but they’re much poorer at preventing the spread of the virus.Researchers have thought that they might be able to turn the nasal cavity and throat into an effective line of defence against the virus that prevents it from proliferating.Last month, the results of an Astra Zeneca-funded trial of the Oxford vaccine in nasal spray form were published in The Lancet.The trial gave the nasal vaccine to 12 people as a booster and 30 people who had not been given a vaccine before. A nasal spray vaccine could lower the amount of infections, suggests the Yale study (Image: GETTY)According to the study, the vaccine created a ‘weak’ response in the immune system. The authors of it wrote that it was ‘insufficient to warrant further development’.The Yale trial, which was published in October 27th, was far more successful. It found that rodents given the booster nasal vaccine were less likely to get infected.In the study, one group of rodents received no vaccine, another received just an injected vaccine, while the last group received an injection as well as a nasal booster.The rodents that were not boosted by the nasal vaccine or had no vaccine at all were way more likely to be infected.DON’T MISS:Bob Mortimer admits he is ‘not very well’ – ‘It’s a real downer’ [CELEBRITY]Dyschezia could signal spreading tumour of bowel cancer – sign that strikes on loo [SYMPTOMS]’Ascites’ can be sign of fatty liver disease – ‘Symptoms may develop slowly or suddenly’ [FATTY LIVER DISEASE] Intramuscular vaccines prime the body to react to the nasal vaccine. (Image: Getty)But Covid is still highly infectious in the UK. According to the Zoe Health study, the most common symptom of Covid is a sore throat for people with two vaccinations.The other most common symptoms include:Runny noseBlocked nosePersistent coughHeadache.The traditional symptoms of Covid, such as loss of smell, shortness of breath and fever are a lot less common.According to the study, shortness of breath is the sixth most common symptom while shortness of breath is down at 29th and fever at eighth.