Possible MERS, SARS vaccine

Researchers at Purdue University pave the way to a vaccine for the SARS virus. Andrew Mesecar, team leader, says the research can also be used with other coronaviruses, including MERS, which shares common enzymes. Their findings include a method of disabling a part of the virus that is present in severe acute respiratory syndromes.

This is a first step toward creating a weakened and safe virus for use in an attenuated live vaccine…The goal in engineering a SARS virus that could be used as a vaccine is to create one that replicates in cells but is unable to fend off the body’s immune response.