Waning
immunity induced by first-generation Spike-alone-based COVID-19 has failed to prevent
immune escape by many variants of concern (VOCs) that emerged from 2020 to 2024, resulting in a prolonged COVID-19
pandemic. Thus, a next-generation
Coronavirus (CoV) vaccine incorporating highly conserved non-Spike SARS-CoV-2 antigens is described herein. Conserved non-Spike
T cell antigens in combination with a Spike
antigen encapsulated in lipid nanoparticles: (i) Induced high frequencies of
lung-resident
antigen-specific CXCR5+CD4+ T follicular helper cells, GzmB+CD4+ and GzmB+CD8+ cytotoxic T cells, and CD69+IFN-γ+TNFα+CD4+ and CD69+IFN-γ+TNFα+CD8+
effector T cells; and (ii) Reduced
viral load and COVID-19-like symptoms caused by various VOCs. The combined
antigen / LNP-based pan-CoV vaccine could be rapidly adapted for clinical use to confer broader cross-
protective immunity against emerging highly mutated and pathogenic VOCs.