NextGen Covid Vax Tracker

A monthly update on vaccine progress

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2026-08-30 09:00:58 UTC

This month’s next generation Covid vaccine update is packed with news. There are results from clinical trials for 2 vaccines, including a featured mucosal vax and a pan-coronavirus one. Plus 9 new preclinical reports, mostly for mucosal vaccines—including 3 pan-coronavirus vaccines.
There are new trials for 2 “universal” Covid vaccines, including an open source mRNA vax. That brings the total number of nextgen vax trials that are recruiting (or about to be) to 11 in 6 countries. They are all listed by country in [a new Vax Tracker feature](https://vaxtracker.wordpress.com/nextgen-covid-vax-trials-recruiting-now/ ) requested by a reader some time ago—suggestions are always welcome! You can drop them in a comment below this post, or via social media ([Mastodon](https://mastodon.online/@hildabast ), [Bluesky](https://bsky.app/profile/hildabast.bsky.social ), [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/hilda-bastian-397924140/ )).
This is the first post since this has become a reader-supported project. Thank you so much to the paid subscribers who are now making this Vax Tracker possible! There is a new section in this post for you of other news—including a new wild conspiracy theory about a mucosal vaccine, a study of a device for delivering an intranasal vaccine, a merbecovirus vaccine study, and more. Paid subscribers also get access to all the regularly updated pipeline charts and tracking tables.<tbody><tr><td><img width="143" height="119" src="https://vaxtracker.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/bullhorn.png" alt="Bullhorn blasting out a call. (Cartoon by Hilda Bastian)"></td><td><strong><em>New Vax Tracker feature:</em></strong><br><a href="https://vaxtracker.wordpress.com/nextgen-covid-vax-trials-recruiting-now/">NextGen Covid Vaccines Recruiting Now!</a></td></tr></tbody># <li>New clinical <a href="#results">trial results</a></li><li>Clinical <a href="#progress">trial progress</a></li><li><a href="#preclinical">Preclinical</a> reports</li><li>This month’s <a href="#paid">news, debunking, and analysis</a> <strong><em>(paid subscription required)</em></strong></li># ####
**New clinical trial results***Phase 1 trial results for a featured vaccine—the intranasal viral vector vaccine from Castlevax (USA):*
This vaccine has a (live) Newcastle disease virus vector. [The phase 1 trial](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0264410X26006791?via%3Dihub ) had 35 participants, all of whom had been previously vaccinated against Covid. They received low or high doses of the vaccine, intranasally, injected, both, or placebo. The 15 participants receiving placebo or low doses of one form only were randomized; the other 20 were not.
No participants experienced severe or serious adverse events. About half the participants reported headaches and/or fatigue. Although adverse reactions were more common with the higher dose, the researchers reported “no clear difference” between the rate of reactions for intranasal and intramuscular administration.
Participants isolated at home after vaccination, and were tested for shedding of Newcastle disease virus. Some participants tested positive, this generally cleared quickly. The researchers found no evidence of viral replication, and blood samples were negative.
The study was not large enough to provide answers on signs of immune response. The researchers reported that these were inconsistent. Participants receiving intranasal vaccine showed some signs of mucosal immunity, but this was not higher with the higher dose. The researchers report that those on higher doses had had more previous Covid vaccine doses, which may account for this.
A phase 2 trial with 200 participants was fully recruited in July 2026.
(All records for this vaccine in my collection [here](https://www.zotero.org/groups/2528572/covid-_vaccine_results/tags/CVAX-01%20Castlevax%2FIcahn%20School%20of%20Medicine%20Mt%20Sinai/library ).)
*Phase 1 trial results for a pan-coronavirus vaccine—the protein subunit vaccine from Osivax (France):*
This vaccine aims to protect against sarbecoviruses. The phase 1 trial had 48 participants who had previously been Covid-vaccinated. They were randomized to a single injection of low-, medium-, or high-dose vaccine, or placebo.
There were no reported severe or serious adverse events. A phase 1 trial is not powered to answer questions of immune response. However, the researchers reported that a 2-dose regimen or adjuvant may be needed, because of limited T-cell response.
(My reporting is limited because the journal restricted access to this paper.)
(All records for this vaccine in my collection [here](https://www.zotero.org/groups/2528572/covid-_vaccine_results/tags/OVX033%20Osivax/library ).)# ####
**Clinical trial progress**
*Featured vaccine trial fully recruited in Japan:*
A phase 1 trial for one of the featured vaccines has now been fully recruited. It is the “Universal” Covid vaccine from VLP Therapeutics in Japan. This is a self-amplifying mRNA vaccine. Omicron-adapted versions of this vaccine are in advanced phase 3 trials. (More on this [here](https://vaxtracker.wordpress.com/featured-vaccines/#1 ).)
*Open source mRNA vaccine on trial in Australia:*
A phase 1 trial for an mRNA vaccine from PopVax (India, Australia) has been registered in Australia. PopVax is aiming to recruit 36 participants from Melbourne. This was one of the trials that had been awarded funding by the US Project NextGen, but was apparently cancelled by the incoming government.
The vaccine aims to be more durable and “variant-proof.” It is an open source vaccine, to ensure that the “benefits are available at the same time to the entire global population, rather than just people lucky enough to live in rich countries.” When the phase 1 trial is complete, [PopVax plans](https://chronicles.popvax.com/p/vacc-popvaxs-plan-to-save-1-million ) to “release design and manufacturing information that allows others to produce and build on our vaccine, and we will not enforce any of our intellectual property rights on those who choose to do so for vaccines against any betacoronavirus.” (More information on the trial [here](https://anzctr.org.au/Trial/Registration/TrialReview.aspx?ACTRN=12626000891325 ).)
*Self-amplifying mRNA vaccine on trial in South Korea:*
A phase 1 clinical trial for a self-amplifying mRNA vaccine from South Korea has been [registered](https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT07791186 ) and [announced](https://www.koreabiomed.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=32903 ). EyeGene Korea plans to start recruiting in Seoul and Suwon in October, aiming for phase 2 in 2027, and seeking marketing approval in 2029. This programme is government-funded, with the goal of making the country self-sufficient for mRNA vaccines.# ####
**Preclinical reports**There are 9 preclinical reports this month, including the first for an intranasal vaccine from Finland that is in clinical trial. There are reports for 3 intranasal pan-coronavirus vaccines, and another 5 mucosal vaccines (including the Finnish one). In addition, there is a report for an intranasal “universal” Covid vaccine.
***Mucosal vaccines***
*Intranasal viral vector vaccine from Rokote Laboratories (Finland): *This vaccine is in clinical trial, and it is based on an adenoviral vector. [This is the first preclinical report](https://www.nature.com/articles/s41541-026-01543-4 ) for the vaccine. (All records in my collection for this vaccine [here](https://www.zotero.org/groups/2528572/covid-_vaccine_results/tags/FINCoVac%20Rokote%20Laboratories/library ).)
*Intranasal viral vector vaccine from ID Pharma Co (Japan):* [This is the first preclinical report](https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-026-60421-0 ) in my collection for this vaccine, which has a non-transmissible Sendai virus (nT-SeV) vector. It was tested in mice and African green monkeys.
*Intranasal viral vector vaccine from the University of Guelph (Canada):* [This is the first preclinical report](https://www.nature.com/articles/s44298-026-00217-1 ) for this vaccine. It was tested in ferrets. The viral vector is Newcastle disease virus.
*Intranasal and intramuscular virus-like particle vaccine from Seoul National University (South Korea):* [This is the first preclinical report ](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0264410X26008686 )for this vaccine. It was tested in mice.
*Intranasal viral vector vaccine from the Smorodintsev Research Institute of Influenza (Russia):* [This is the first preclinical report](https://www.mdpi.com/2076-393X/14/8/684 ) for this vaccine, which has an influenza virus vector. It aims to protected cagainst Covid and influenza. The vaccine was tested in hamsters and macaques.
***Mucosal pan-coronavirus vaccines***
*Intranasal live attenuated vaccine from the University of Hong Kong (China):* [This is the second preclinical report](https://www.nature.com/articles/s41541-026-01540-7 ) for this vaccine. (The first is [here](https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2518645123 ).) It was tested in mice, including a transmission test.
*Intranasal gold nanoparticle vaccine from Fudan University (China):* [This is the first preclinical report](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2949928326000489 ) for this vaccine. It was tested in mice.
*Intranasal ferritin nanoparticle vaccine from Yale University (USA): *[This is the first preclinical report](https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.08.26.747300v1 ) for this vaccine. It was tested in mice.
***“Variant-proof” (“universal”) Covid vaccine***
*mRNA vaccine from Centro Nacional de Biotecnología (Spain):* [This is the first preclinical report](https://www.researchsquare.com/article/rs-10497926/v1 ) for this vaccine. It was tested in mice.# ####
**This month’s news, debunking, and analysis**
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2026-07-29 08:51:58 UTC

Hello!
Each month, this *Tracker* will keep you up-to-date with recent developments in vaccines that aim to prevent Covid infection, last longer, resist variants—or even protect against other coronaviruses. There are already several dozen of these in clinical trials, with more to come.
In an average month, there are new results from a clinical trial, a new trial gets underway, and there is news on progress in a few other ongoing trials. There are preclinical reports, too—a half a dozen or more—and other important developments, like progress on Covid human challenge studies.
This *Tracker* picks up where my monthly updates at the independent PLOS blog, *Absolutely Maybe*, left off. You can get an idea of what an update looks like in the final [July 2026 update there](https://absolutelymaybe.plos.org/2026/07/27/bumper-month-of-clinical-trial-news-to-ring-out-this-vax-series/ ). Updates for free subscribers at this *Tracker* will be similar. That includes access to the [featured vaccines watchlist](https://vaxtracker.wordpress.com/featured-vaccines/ )—a set of vaccines in advanced development that are making progress.
This *Tracker* extends that project in several exciting new ways. It is only possible because of reader support, so a big “thank you!” to everyone who is able to help with a paid subscription. As well as enabling the project, you will get access to extra analysis in monthly updates, along with regularly updated overview charts and tracking tracking tables on vaccines in clinical trials, packed with information and analyses.
Having a dedicated website for the project means I can add sections to enhance the information’s usefulness to all users. Check out the new [background reading area](https://vaxtracker.wordpress.com/background-reading/ ), with links to new explainer pages as well as previous popular posts.
And my online collection of vaccine records—now with over 3,400 entries dating from the start of Covid vaccine development in 2020—remains freely accessible.
Finally, thank you to the community of readers whose enthusiasm for this project have kept me motivated to continue. I hope you like the new and improved *Tracker*! The first full update will land in late August.
*Hilda Bastian*
*July 29, 2026*
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