A health tech start up that provides tele-consultation tools is working with Oxford University on its COVID-19 vaccine clinical trial.
The remote consulting solution, from Nye Health, will be used to connect study participants with researchers and clinicians regardless of their location.
The study is to test a new vaccine against COVID-19 in healthy volunteers. Around 1,110 people will take part in the trial, half receiving the vaccine and the other half (the control group) receiving a widely available meningitis vaccine.
It aims to assess whether healthy people can be protected from COVID-19 with this new vaccine called ChAdOx1 nCoV-19. The vaccine is made from a virus (ChAdOx1), which is a weakened version of a common cold virus (adenovirus) that causes infections in chimpanzees, that has been genetically changed so that it is impossible for it to grow in humans.
Genetic material has been added to the construct, that is used to make proteins from the COVID-19 virus. This protein is usually found on the surface of COVID-19 and plays an essential role in the infection pathway of the virus. The SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus uses its spike protein to bind onto receptors on human cells to gain entry to the cells and cause an infection.
The trial is hoping to make the body recognise and develop an immune response to the Spike protein that will help stop the virus from entering human cells and therefore prevent infection.
As a result of the current social distancing measures, this trial will see some elements managed remotely and therefore use the technology from Nye.
Dr Alexander Finlayson, CEO and Founder of Nye Health, comments “The work being carried out by Oxford University is incredibly inspiring – they are bringing their world-leading expertise to bear on the most critical of challenges.”
“Nye is therefore immensely excited to be playing a small role in helping this clinical trial run smoothly. Given current circumstances, some experts may have to work from home in the coming weeks and keeping in close, secure contact with participants will also be vital.”
“The Nye Phone will therefore be used to make sure this communication is safe, simple and compliant. Our team has extensive experience working on clinical trials and medical research projects so we are hopefully well placed to ensure our technology supports this essential work in the right way.”
