Various companies around the world have been researching more and more into developing a single vaccine against all present and future coronaviruses. As time goes on and more variants are found, scientists also believe that other members of the coronavirus family will cause new outbreaks.

Researchers from San Diego to Boston are now starting to turn the possibility of a vaccine into a reality, with help from a three-year $2.6 million grant from the National Institutes of Health that president of La Jolla Institute for Immunology, Erica Ollmann Saphire won.

The researchers in Boston are studying those who have been vaccinated and/or recovered from COVID-19. They are searching for any immune response with the potential to fight off more than one coronavirus.

With the on-going efforts from Saphire's team that have the responsibility for the design of the vaccine, where they have already figured out how to manufacture a version of the coronavirus' spike protein. This protein is responsible for cell entry and made up of 1,160 to 1,400 amino acids, depending upon the type of virus. It is also the part that closely mimics the shape of the spike found on the actual virus.

This grant will last a total of five years, plus support from additional funding in the fourth year. Saphire has said that by that time they hope to have a clearer understanding of how this vaccine should be administered. Which would include details such as: knowing how many doses people will need if proteins should be used and how far apart the shots of vaccinations should be spaced from one another.

A team of scientists at Scripps Research, not far from Saphire's team, are another group working towards making a pan-coronavirus vaccine a possibility for the future. Dennis Burton who is part of the on-going research team say that they are using the same strategy that they have used to study HIV for decades. Which means closely examining antibody responses on how to reverse-engineer a vaccine for long-lasting protection.

Burton has said, "It's a case of seeing how far you can push the envelope."

Both teams optimistic about the future of studying for a vaccine against all coronaviruses, even though it will be a difficult process for all involved.

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