Universal vaccine against respiratory infections and allergens • Hacker News Board

Re: Universal vaccine against respiratory infections and allergens

#111

Post by baggachipz » Wed, Mar 11, 2026, 12:47 PM UTC

wcoenen wrote: post #81

cameldrv wrote: post #72

This seems too good to be true. Respiratory infections kill and debilitate a lot of people. If cranking up the innate immune system all the time reduced illness with no downsides, you'd think evolution would have done it already, but it didn't, which makes me think there's probably a downside, and the fact that the innate immune system is only cranked up when a pathogen is detected is probably because the downside is…

I was thinking the same thing. Perhaps the trade-off made by evolution is about saving energy? In that case it shouldn't be a problem to boost the innate immune system, as long as you have surplus calories to spend. But it could be something else entirely.

> shouldn't be a problem to boost the innate immune system, as long as you have surplus calories to spend.

So I'd lose weight too? Sign me up yesterday.

Re: Universal vaccine against respiratory infections and allergens

#112

Post by jmye » Wed, Mar 11, 2026, 12:47 PM UTC

ivan_gammel wrote: post #103

ipaddr wrote: post #68

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you made it to fertility age your life expectancy was much longer.

Yes, and to get there we use immunity that is activated on demand. Clearly that was better from evolutionary perspective than preactivation or always-on.

> Yes, and to get there we use immunity that is activated on demand. Clearly that was better from evolutionary perspective than preactivation or always-on.

I don't think you understand evolution. Neither needs to be "better" for anything other than survival to reproduction. Evolution isn't min-maxing in a video game.

Re: Universal vaccine against respiratory infections and allergens

#113

Post by wat10000 » Wed, Mar 11, 2026, 12:51 PM UTC

cameldrv wrote: post #72

This seems too good to be true. Respiratory infections kill and debilitate a lot of people. If cranking up the innate immune system all the time reduced illness with no downsides, you'd think evolution would have done it already, but it didn't, which makes me think there's probably a downside, and the fact that the innate immune system is only cranked up when a pathogen is detected is probably because the downside is…

They’re largely an artifact of civilization, with people living in close proximity to lots of other people, and to livestock. We haven’t had time to evolve for that new reality.

Re: Universal vaccine against respiratory infections and allergens

#114

Post by chewbacha » Wed, Mar 11, 2026, 12:51 PM UTC

This is cool but I’m sorry, that’s not a vaccine - it’s a prophylactic.

A vaccine or inoculation is named because it creates a sustained adaptation to a targeted antigen. Something that boosts immune response is not an acquired adaptation! This would need to be re-upped every month or so.

Good for travel and brief encounters. Not an actual immunization.

Not too mention boosting cell growth factors can have unintended side effects like cancer! There are immune system cancers and I would be concerned about risks there.

Re: Universal vaccine against respiratory infections and allergens

#115

Post by m-schuetz » Wed, Mar 11, 2026, 12:51 PM UTC

hhjinks wrote: post #109

H4rryp0tt3r wrote: post #84

Earlier quoted context omitted.

TIL! I have dust mite allergies, how will this help?

Have you considered just doing hyposensibilization therapy? No reason to go the way of surgery before trying that. Worked wonders for me and my array of allergies, dust mites among them.

(one who recommended surgery here)

I tried hyposensibilization therapy, and while it worked for seasonal birch pollen issues, it didn't work for dust mites, oral allergies, and chronically stuffed sinuses.

Re: Universal vaccine against respiratory infections and allergens

#116

Post by jmye » Wed, Mar 11, 2026, 12:54 PM UTC

butILoveLife wrote: post #36

Horatius77 wrote: post #20

Appears that it is trying to stimulate broad immunity .. instead of any one specific virus/disease. Artificial and overstimulation of our immune systems long-term can't be healthy. Definitely a tradeoff here.

Cant we say this applies to the flu vaccine? This almost validates why I skip it every year. I get sick after getting the flu vaccine and feel pretty bad for 1-3 days... then I get the flu anyway because they picked the wrong ones.

> Cant we say this applies to the flu vaccine? This almost validates why I skip it every year.

These two things have literally nothing to do with each other.

> I get sick after getting the flu vaccine and feel pretty bad for 1-3 days

I thought you skipped it every year? So did this happen like, once, and you don't actually have any real basis for comparison or understanding, here? Come on.

Re: Universal vaccine against respiratory infections and allergens

#117

Post by jmye » Wed, Mar 11, 2026, 12:55 PM UTC

ekianjo wrote: post #42

dionian wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

you would think so! as a "vaccine skeptic", i think this kind of research is important and patients should be able to decide w/ their doctor which to pursue based on their individual condition. perhaps this tradeoff will be worth it in higher risk individuals.

Until they mandate it...

> Until they mandate it...

When, specifically, do you think that has happened? I'll wait.

Re: Universal vaccine against respiratory infections and allergens

#118

Post by gcanyon » Wed, Mar 11, 2026, 1:02 PM UTC

ivan_gammel wrote: post #60

gcanyon wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think you have evolution backwards. There only needs to not be a reason we need it to survive long enough to reproduce. Or more probabilistically, there needs to not be a significant reproductive benefit to it. And bear in mind that most people don't have a problem surviving colds and the like long enough to reproduce even with no vaccines at all, and that was probably more true for much of our evolutionary history…

>There only needs to not be a reason we need it to survive long enough to reproduce. Humans had life expectancy even shorter than our fertility period until recently and they developed as social species hundreds of thousands years ago, for which living beyond fertility period is beneficial (grandparents were invented by evolution too). > And bear in mind that most people don't have a problem surviving colds That’s mo…

> Humans had life expectancy even shorter than our fertility period

That's largely due to infant/child mortality. Once you reached reproductive age, life expectancy was roughly 50, plenty of time to have plenty of kids.

Re: Universal vaccine against respiratory infections and allergens

#119

Post by jml78 » Wed, Mar 11, 2026, 1:19 PM UTC

chewbacha wrote: post #114

This is cool but I’m sorry, that’s not a vaccine - it’s a prophylactic. A vaccine or inoculation is named because it creates a sustained adaptation to a targeted antigen. Something that boosts immune response is not an acquired adaptation! This would need to be re-upped every month or so. Good for travel and brief encounters. Not an actual immunization. Not too mention boosting cell growth factors can have unintended…

I would also mention, just general auto-immune diseases. I would be very worried this could trigger those in people who wouldn't have gotten one otherwise.

Re: Universal vaccine against respiratory infections and allergens

#120

Post by butILoveLife » Wed, Mar 11, 2026, 1:21 PM UTC

jmye wrote: post #116

butILoveLife wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Cant we say this applies to the flu vaccine? This almost validates why I skip it every year. I get sick after getting the flu vaccine and feel pretty bad for 1-3 days... then I get the flu anyway because they picked the wrong ones.

> Cant we say this applies to the flu vaccine? This almost validates why I skip it every year. These two things have literally nothing to do with each other. > I get sick after getting the flu vaccine and feel pretty bad for 1-3 days I thought you skipped it every year? So did this happen like, once, and you don't actually have any real basis for comparison or understanding, here? Come on.

Did it for a few years in my 20s. Then did it for a few years from family peer pressure. Then did the covid thing.

Probably n=5 or 6 out of 18.