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A team led by Oxford University’s Alexander Douglas reported disappointing phase 1 trial results for intranasal administration of the ChAdOx1 vaccine against COVID-19. Consisting of a replication-deficient chimpanzee adenovirus vector encoding the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein, the vaccine is usually delivered intramuscularly and has proven effective at preventing serious illness and death, but none of the current vaccines have had similar success at blocking viral transmission. Mucosal vaccines could potentially prevent SARS-CoV-2 infection at the point of viral entry in the respiratory tract, halting the spread of the virus. “We urgently need more research to develop vaccines which can block transmission of respiratory pandemic viruses using delivery routes which are safe and practical at large scale,” said Douglas in a press release.