Development and in vivo evaluation of a SARS-CoV-2 inactivated vaccine using high hydrostatic pressure
Developing low-cost vaccine production strategies is crucial to achieving global health equity and mitigating the spread and impact of disease outbreaks. High hydrostatic pressure (HHP) technology is a widely used technology employed in the food industry for long-term preservation. This project aims at validating HHP as a cost-effective method for the production of highly immunogenic thermal stable whole-virus SARS-CoV-2 vaccines. Structural studies on HHP-inactivated viruses demonstrated pressure-dependent effects, with higher pressures (500-600 MPa) destabilizing viral morphology. Immunogenicity assessments, in animal models, revealed that 500 MPa treatment elicited the most robust humoral and cellular immune responses, outperforming heat inactivation. Additionally, HHP-inactivated viral preparation retained thermostability for 30 days at 4 °C, reducing cold-chain dependencies and enabling vaccine distribution also in low-resource settings. With its rapid, cost-effective, and scalable production process, HHP presents a transformative, equitable solution for global vaccine development, particularly for emerging pathogens.
Authors
- Martina Brandolini (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0002-1558-032X)
- Giorgio Dirani (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7554-9653)
- Claudia Colosimo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0001-4135-9402)
- Antonio Lavazza (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7646-3592)
- Michele Morbarigazzi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0001-2892-8623)
- Giulia Gatti (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1907-8791)
- Laura Dionisi
- Alessandra Scagliarini (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1146-0101)
- Silvia Zannoli (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6296-505X)
- Vittorio Sambri (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5012-7355)
- Simona Semprini
- Massimiliano Guerra (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0000-3654-7946)
- Pietro Rocculi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1255-3185)
- Alessandra Mistral De Pascali (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8662-0782)
- Laura Grumiro (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2297-3009)
- Monica Cricca
- Anna Marzucco (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0003-3236-6525)
- Davide Lelli (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5775-6058)
- Maria Sofia Montanari
- Ludovica Ingletto
- Francesca Battioni
Institutions
- Traverse Biosciences (United States) (US)
- Azienda Unità Sanitaria Locale Della Romagna (IT)
- University of Bologna (IT)
Publication Details
- Journal
- npj Vaccines
- Published
- 2025-04-25
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s41541-025-01136-7
- Citations
- 3
- Primary Topic
- SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 Research
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 4.19
Funders
- European Commission