Professor Xiaoping Zhu, Assistant Research Professor Weizhong Li, and Faculty Assistant Tao Wang were awarded COVID-19 Research Invention of the Year at the 2022 Invention of the Year ceremony. Together they developed a nasal protein vaccination strategy to block viral shedding and transmission from person to person. And because it is protein-based an non-invasive, it can be administered to all ages, either as a primary vaccination or as a booster for those previously vaccinated or infected.
COVID-19 Research Invention of the Year: Mucosal Vaccination Against 2019-nCoV Infection and Other Infections
With over half the worldwide population fully vaccinated against COVID-19, an onslaught of breakthrough infections have left scientists wondering what more can be done. Researchers at the University of Maryland are seeking to fill in the gaps left by standard intramuscular vaccines and stop the spread of COVID-19 at its source–in the nose.
