4:57
- ABC News
- April 8, 2021
Next-gen Army COVID vaccine begins human trials
Scientists believe it might combat deadly variants and even future pandemics.
4:57
From the beginning his focus was on next-generation threats, ones that could be thriving in unknown bat caves as you read this sentence, waiting to make contact and proliferate inside humans.
\"Even though we got the (available vaccines) within a year, how many hundreds of thousands of people in the U.S. and how many millions of people globally lost their lives before the vaccine was even available?\" Modjarrad asked ABC News' Bob Woodruff during an exclusive visit to the lab last week. \"We want to get to a point where the vaccine is already out there -- maybe already in people's arms -- before the next variant, next strain, next species of coronavirus occurs.\"
The three vaccines already authorized for use in the U.S. work by feeding the body genetic instructions to create the spike protein that is found on the surface of the virus. Once the body creates the protein, the immune system is alerted and begins forming antibodies. It's a safe way of triggering a similar immune response as one a person would have after contracting the actual virus.
![\"PHOTO:](\"http://a.abcnews.com/images/US/vaccine-2-abc-er-200429_hpEmbed_4x3_384.jpg\")
The WRAIR vaccine skips both the instruction and creation steps, bringing the already-formed spike protein straight into the arm along with an immune-boosting adjuvant compound, quickly starting the antibody response.
And unlike other protein-based vaccines being tested, the WRAIR candidate presents virus-looking nanoparticles, each with a consistent array of 24 spike proteins arranged in small bouquets of three protruding from a ferritin base.
\"There's a lot of theories as to why something presented in this fashion gives such a good immune response, but in some ways you can see it looks like a virus as well,\" Modjarrad said. \"So it has some properties that educate the immune response in a way that it gives you a very strong, but also a broad response.\"
Test results with thousands of mice and dozens of monkeys have been promising.
![\"PHOTO:](\"http://a.abcnews.com/images/US/vaccine-1-abc-er-200429_hpMain_4x3t_384.jpg\")
\"We think (other) vaccines are probably going to be protective against new variants, but they might be decreased in their protection,\" Modjarrad said. \"What we've seen with our vaccine so far in animals ... is that the vaccine is not decreased in effectiveness against those variants at all. And it is effective against other coronaviruses like SARS-1. So what we have developed now is starting to look like a pan-SARS vaccine ... and we're going to start testing everything in between.\"
If successful in clinical trials, WRAIR's vaccine could become common among the U.S. population, possibly as a booster for already-vaccinated people.
Being a military lab, practicality was a primary design concern, which could incidentally give their product global appeal. In particular, it is highly stable and doesn't require special freezing.
\"That means you can put it in a cooler on the back of a motorcycle in the Amazon or the Sahara or wherever, and that vaccine should still be OK,\" Modjarrad said.
But the \"if\" remains. Though the WRAIR scientists brim with confidence in conversation, they are soberly aware that their product has yet to be proven in humans.
\"They have some very early data to suggest in the laboratory that the immune response evoked by this vaccine will cover a variety of different strains,\" said Dr. William Schaffner, a professor of preventative medicine and infectious diseases at Vanderbilt University in Nashville. \"Whether that translates actually into protection in people against the variety of strains -- that remains to be determined. Long journeys, first steps.\"
![\"PHOTO:](\"http://a.abcnews.com/images/Politics/reed-2-ht-er-210406_1617742888355_hpEmbed_3x2_384.jpg\")
On Tuesday, retired Army Col. Francis Holinaty stepped up to be the first to be injected in WRAIR's Phase 1 trial.
\"Over my 30-year career I have served in many places around the world in many different operational settings, some more arduous than others, some more hazardous than others,\" Holinaty said. \"And one day I'm on the Metro, and it's almost as if it was fate -- I just looked up and I saw a poster, and I saw Walter Reed, and it took me a while to process what this poster was saying. And when it dawned on me that they were trying to do a trial for the COVID-19, I saw this as another opportunity to just serve.\"
Holinaty can't be sure whether he received a dose of the vaccine or a placebo, but said afterward that he felt fine. He wanted people to know that there are many ways to fight the pandemic.
\"You don't have to be in the military, you don't have to be a first responder, but you can help all,\" he said. \"And if you have a calling to help people this is just one of the ways you can do it.\"
","canonicalUrl":"https://abcnews.com/Politics/gen-army-covid-vaccine-heard-begun-human-trials/story?id=76901332","legacySlug":"/news/story/gen-army-covid-vaccine-heard-begun-human-trials-76901332","noIndexNoFollow":false},"publishTime":"09:03","publishDate":"04-08-2021","updatedTime":"16:49","updatedDate":"04-12-2021","socialImage":{"alt":"Francis Holinaty receives the first injection of the clinical trial to test WRAIR's spike ferritin nanoparticle (SpFN) vaccine for COVID-19 at the WRAIR Clinical Trials Center, April 6, 2021, in Silver Spring, Md.","credit":"Walter Reed Army Institute of Research","ratio":"16x9","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/Politics/reed-1-ht-er-210406_1617741127987_hpMain_16x9_1600.jpg","width":992,"height":558},"datePublished":"4/8/2021 09:03:00 GMT","video":{"live":false,"id":76901332,"headline":"Next-gen Army COVID vaccine begins human trials","mediaAssetTitle":"WALTER REED VACCINE TRIALS","description":"Scientists believe it might combat deadly variants and even future pandemics. ","duration":"4:57","posterImg":{"url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/default-img-undefined.png","width":608,"height":342},"video":{"feed":"https://service-pkgabcnews.akamaized.net/opp/hls/abcnews/2021/04/210407_abcnl_prime_woodruff_fix_,500,800,1200,1800,2500,3200,4500,.mp4.csmil/playlist.m3u8"},"playlist":["132055565","131830882","130993584"]},"relatedItems":[{"contentType":"video","date":"April 15, 2026","headline":"American influencer found dead in Tanzania","section":"News","slug":"/video/132055565","id":"132055565","image":{"alt":"VIDEO: American influencer found dead in Tanzania","credit":"ABCNews.com","ratio":"1x1","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260415_gma_norwood_ashlee2_732_hpMain_1x1_608.jpg","width":384,"height":384},"images":{"alt":"VIDEO: American influencer found dead in Tanzania","credit":"ABCNews.com","crops":[{"16x9":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260415_gma_norwood_ashlee2_732_hpMain_16x9_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260415_gma_norwood_ashlee2_732_hpMain_16x9_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260415_gma_norwood_ashlee2_732_hpMain_16x9_1600.jpg"}},{"9x16":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260415_gma_norwood_ashlee2_732_hpMain_9x16_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260415_gma_norwood_ashlee2_732_hpMain_9x16_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260415_gma_norwood_ashlee2_732_hpMain_16x9_1600.jpg"}},{"1x1":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260415_gma_norwood_ashlee2_732_hpMain_1x1_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260415_gma_norwood_ashlee2_732_hpMain_1x1_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260415_gma_norwood_ashlee2_732_hpMain_1x1_1600.jpg"}}]}},{"contentType":"video","date":"April 8, 2026","headline":"Ceasefire analysis, unanswered questions ahead","section":"News","slug":"/video/131830882","id":"131830882","image":{"alt":"VIDEO: Ceasefire analysis, unanswered questions ahead","credit":"ABCNews.com","ratio":"1x1","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260408_gma_krl1_hpMain_1x1_608.jpg","width":384,"height":384},"images":{"alt":"VIDEO: Ceasefire analysis, unanswered questions ahead","credit":"ABCNews.com","crops":[{"16x9":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260408_gma_krl1_hpMain_16x9_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260408_gma_krl1_hpMain_16x9_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260408_gma_krl1_hpMain_16x9_1600.jpg"}},{"9x16":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260408_gma_krl1_hpMain_9x16_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260408_gma_krl1_hpMain_9x16_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260408_gma_krl1_hpMain_16x9_1600.jpg"}},{"1x1":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260408_gma_krl1_hpMain_1x1_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260408_gma_krl1_hpMain_1x1_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260408_gma_krl1_hpMain_1x1_1600.jpg"}}]}},{"contentType":"video","date":"March 12, 2026","headline":"Winter whiplash plunges temperatures along the East Coast","section":"News","slug":"/video/130993584","id":"130993584","image":{"alt":"VIDEO: Winter whiplash plunges temperatures along the East Coast","credit":"ABCNews.com","ratio":"1x1","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260312_gma_zee_storm2_hpMain_1x1_608.jpg","width":384,"height":384},"images":{"alt":"VIDEO: Winter whiplash plunges temperatures along the East Coast","credit":"ABCNews.com","crops":[{"16x9":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260312_gma_zee_storm2_hpMain_16x9_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260312_gma_zee_storm2_hpMain_16x9_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260312_gma_zee_storm2_hpMain_16x9_1600.jpg"}},{"9x16":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260312_gma_zee_storm2_hpMain_9x16_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260312_gma_zee_storm2_hpMain_9x16_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260312_gma_zee_storm2_hpMain_16x9_1600.jpg"}},{"1x1":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260312_gma_zee_storm2_hpMain_1x1_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260312_gma_zee_storm2_hpMain_1x1_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260312_gma_zee_storm2_hpMain_1x1_1600.jpg"}}]}}],"relatedContentSection":"news","schemaContent":{"name":"Next-gen Army COVID vaccine begins human trials","description":"Scientists believe it might combat deadly variants and even future pandemics. ","duration":"4:57","uploadDate":"04-08-2021","publication":"04-08-2021","images":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/default-img-undefined.png","url":"https://service-pkgabcnews.akamaized.net/opp/hls/abcnews/2021/04/210407_abcnl_prime_woodruff_fix_,500,800,1200,1800,2500,3200,4500,.mp4.csmil/playlist.m3u8","contentUrl":"https://service-pkgabcnews.akamaized.net/opp/hls/abcnews/2021/04/210407_abcnl_prime_woodruff_fix_,500,800,1200,1800,2500,3200,4500,.mp4.csmil/playlist.m3u8","link":"https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/news/story/gen-army-covid-vaccine-heard-begun-human-trials-76901332"}},"playlist":[{"id":"132054443","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132054798","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132033010","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131912713","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131830583","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131834976","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131554765","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131554815","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131543053","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131432442","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131121474","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131247079","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131228784","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131178806","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131142257","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131046664","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131048076","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131033212","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"130999943","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"130971027","contentType":"story","section":"news"}],"kvps":{"pgtyp":"article","lang":"en","sp":"goodmorningamerica","programmatic":"true","bundleId":"com.abcnews"}},"analytics":{"accountID":"wdgnewwdgnewgmaweb","ns":"gma","pageName":"gma:news:video","pageType":"video","globalSpecVersion":"v1.08","siteDifferentiator":"gma:site","tagID":"g_page01","userABCookie":"0","section":"news","title":"Next-gen Army COVID vaccine begins human trials","pubTime":"05:03","pubDate":"04-08-2021","modTime":"12:49","modDate":"04-12-2021","taxonomyTags":"none","id":76901332,"editorialOtherSubjects":"","wordCount":"none","columns":"none","authors":"","authorsUnit":"none","authorsBureau":"none","subBrand":"Good Morning America","provider":"Good Morning America","videoName":"Next-gen Army COVID vaccine begins human trials","mediaAssetTitle":"WALTER REED VACCINE TRIALS","videoId":76901332,"mediaOnPage":"video","legacySlug":"/news/story/gen-army-covid-vaccine-heard-begun-human-trials-76901332"},"taboola":{}},"request":{"headers":{},"httpVersion":"1.1","method":"GET","url":"/video/76901332","vary":{"host":"www.goodmorningamerica.com","cached":true,"path":"/video/76901332","forwarded-proto":"https","device":"desktop","userab":"0"}},"viewport":{"width":1260,"height":0},"user":{}};