London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Tuesday, Sep 16, 2025

COVID-19: Human guinea pigs injected with coronavirus

COVID-19: Human guinea pigs injected with coronavirus

In a world first, 2500 brave Britons will be deliberately injected with COVID-19 as part of groundbreaking research into the killer virus.

The world’s first “human challenge COVID trials” will see 2500 hero Brits deliberately being infected with coronavirus for research.

The trial comes as new evidence shows that COVID-19 immunity for those suffering a mild version of the disease lasts at least four months, say experts.

Imperial College said its joint human challenge study involves volunteers aged 18 to 30, with the project starting in January – and results expected in May.

Initially, 90 volunteers will be given a dose of an experimental nasal vaccine.

They’ll then be deliberately infected with COVID-19.

One keen volunteer told The Times, “If I die, better to die gloriously.”

Alex Greer, a chemistry student who runs the Effective Altruism Society at Durham University said, “It’s about using evidence and careful analysis to do the most good in the world.”

The 20-year-old told the paper that he’s one of 2500 people volunteering to take part in the world’s first coronavirus “human challenge trials”.

Participants will be deliberately given the bug “in a secure bio-containment suite”, according to The Times.

The so-called human challenge study is used infrequently because of questions over the ethics of infecting otherwise healthy people.

However, the government announced the project back in October, saying, “the aim will be to discover the smallest amount of virus it takes to cause a person to develop COVID-19 infection.

“This is known as a virus characterisation study and will be backed by £33.6 million ($A59 million) of government investment.”

But it has taken a few months to come to fruition as before any research could begin, the study had to be approved by ethics committees and regulators.

The first stage of this project is being delivered by a partnership between Imperial College London, the Royal Free Hospital’s specialist and secure research unit in London and industry-leading clinical company hVIVO, which has pioneered viral human challenge models.

Volunteers will stay at a specialist diseases clinic at the Royal Free, with each person paid about £4000 ($A7000) for their two to three-week stay, reports the Mail Online.


Clinical trials in London will see 2500 willing participants purposefully injected with the coronavirus to help scientific research into the deadly disease.


Professor Peter Openshaw, mucosal immunologist and respiratory physician, working on lung infections at Imperial College in London, said researchers aimed to just “get the virus to replicate in the nose”.

“We think that by taking every precaution we can really limit the infection.

“And then we should be able to do it quite safely given the vast amount of experience that we have in this field,” he said.

The expert, co-investigator on the study, said in October: “Deliberately infecting volunteers with a known human pathogen is never undertaken lightly.

“However, such studies are enormously informative about a disease, even one so well studied as COVID-19.”

The study will take place in world-class clinical facilities at the Royal Free specifically designed to contain the virus.

Highly trained medics and scientists will be on hand to carefully examine how the virus behaves in the body and to ensure volunteer safety.

Volunteers will be monitored for up to a year after participating in the study to ensure their long-term wellbeing.


A vial of the University of Oxford’s COVID-19 candidate vaccine, known as AZD1222, co-invented by the University and Vaccitech in partnership with pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca. Picture: John Cairns/University of Oxford


Once this first phase is completed, researchers will deploy this human challenge model to study closely how vaccines work in the body to stop COVID.

Although other countries are considering this type of study for coronavirus, the UK is a leading country in the science behind and the delivery of these studies, the government says.

Mr Greer said: “A lot of people have caught the disease and had no say in it.

“Hopefully by giving my informed consent I can help prevent others being blindsided.”

Another volunteer, Jennifer Wright, 29, said: “Some of my friends work for the NHS and they’ve been taking risks all through the pandemic while I’ve been looked after and stayed safe.”

Alastair Fraser-Urquhart, 18, of Stoke-on-Trent, said: “I’ll be remaining at the clinic, really, for as long as it takes.

“Obviously we can’t have it infecting anyone who isn’t a part of the trial, so every volunteer would need to be held in bio-containment.”

The teen added that he had offered to take part to help “bring the world out of the pandemic sooner”.

“I can’t let this opportunity to do something, to really do something, pass me by when I’m at such low risk,” he said.

“The idea that I could have a part to play in ending, you know, millions of people’s misery and pain and I don’t … it just doesn’t sit well with me,” he added.

Paul van den Bosch, 66, said he hopes the ‘human challenge’ will extend its age group to accept older people.

He told the Times: “Our lives are finite and it’s not our job to stay safe all the time.

“We’re going to die in the end, and if one wants to be romantic about it then, you know, dying gloriously is better than dying of dementia.”

The research comes as the Royal Free London announced on December 23 that COVID-19 immunity for those who had a mild version of the disease lasts at least four months, according to its latest research.

The study analysed antibody and T-cell responses in 136 London healthcare workers, 76 of whom had mild or asymptomatic infection dating back to the start of lockdown in March 2020.

A T-cell is one of the main adaptive parts of the immune system, and its role in the body is to kill infected host cells and activate other immune cells.

The team found that 89 per cent of those analysed carried neutralising antibodies 16-18 weeks following infection, and this was usually complemented by a multi-pronged T-cell response.

However, the research also suggests that these two arms of protective immunity can become uncoupled, with some people showing T-cell immunity but no evidence of antibodies, and vice versa.

Scientists across the globe have been working to understand how our immune system protects us against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19 disease, and how long this protection lasts.

Much of the debate around protective immunity has focused on the different roles of B-cells, which make antibodies, and T-cells, white blood cells which work in several different ways to help protect from viruses.

The team found that T-cell responses tended to be higher in those with the classic, defining symptoms of coronavirus in comparison to those with asymptomatic infections.

Understanding protective immunity “will require careful and simultaneous scrutiny of T-cell and antibody responses,” the researchers said.

WHAT IS THE UK’S HUMAN CHALLENGE STUDY INTO COVID?


Volunteers will be monitored for up to a year after participating.

Human challenge studies have been used to develop vaccines for diseases including typhoid, cholera and malaria.

They differ from standard clinical trials in which volunteers are vaccinated to see if they develop a disease circulating in the community over several months.

In these studies, a smaller group of volunteers is exposed to an infection after they have been vaccinated. The aim in the UK will be to discover the smallest amount of virus it takes to cause a person to develop COVID-19 infection.

This is known as a virus characterisation study and will be backed by £33.6 million ($A59 million) of government investment. The research will be conducted at the Royal Free Hospital in London, which has a specially designed area to contain the disease.

Volunteers will be monitored for at least a year to ensure they don’t suffer any long-term effects.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
U.S. and Britain Poised to Finalize Over $10 Billion in High-Tech, Nuclear and Defense Deals During Trump State Visit
China Finds Nvidia Violated Antitrust Laws in Mellanox Deal, Deepens Trade Tensions with US
US Air Force Begins Modifications on Qatar-Donated Jet Amid Plans to Use It as Air Force One
Pope Leo Warns of Societal Crisis Over Mega-CEO Pay, Citing Tesla’s Proposed Trillion-Dollar Package
Poland Green-Lights NATO Deployment in Response to Major Russian Drone Incursion
Elon Musk Retakes Lead as World’s Richest After Brief Ellison Surge
U.S. and China Agree on Framework to Shift TikTok to American Ownership
London Daily Podcast: London Massive Pro Democracy Rally, Musk Support, UK Economic Data and Premier League Results Mark Eventful Weekend
This Week in AI: Meta’s Superintelligence Push, xAI’s Ten Billion-Dollar Raise, Genesis AI’s Robotics Ambitions, Microsoft Restructuring, Amazon’s Million-Robot Milestone, and Google’s AlphaGenome Update
Le Pen Tightens the Pressure on Macron as France Edges Toward Political Breakdown
Musk calls for new UK government at huge pro-democracy rally in London, but Britons have been brainwashed to obey instead of fighting for their human rights
Elon Musk responds to post calling for the murder of Erika Kirk, widow of Charlie Kirk: 'Either we fight back or they will kill us'
Czech Republic signs €1.34 billion contract for Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks with delivery from 2028
USA: Office Depot Employees Refused to Print Poster in Memory of Charlie Kirk – and Were Fired
Proposed U.S. Bill Would Allow Civil Suits Against Judges Who Release Repeat Violent Offenders
Penske Media Sues Google Over “AI Overviews,” Claiming It Uses Journalism Without Consent and Destroys Traffic
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
French Debt Downgrade Piles Pressure on Macron’s New Prime Minister
US and UK Near Tech, Nuclear and Whisky Deals Ahead of Trump Trip
One in Three Europeans Now Uses TikTok, According to the Chinese Tech Giant
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
NATO Deploys ‘Eastern Sentry’ After Russian Drones Violate Polish Airspace
Anesthesiologist Left Operation Mid-Surgery to Have Sex with Nurse
Tens of Thousands of Young Chinese Get Up Every Morning and Go to Work Where They Do Nothing
The New Life of Novak Djokovic
The German Owner of Politico Mathias Döpfner Eyes Further U.S. Media Expansion After Axel Springer Restructuring
Suspect Arrested: Utah Man in Custody for Charlie Kirk’s Fatal Shooting
In a politically motivated trial: Bolsonaro Sentenced to 27 Years for Plotting Coup After 2022 Defeat
German police raid AfD lawmaker’s offices in inquiry over Chinese payments
Turkish authorities seize leading broadcaster amid fraud and tax investigation
Volkswagen launches aggressive strategy to fend off Chinese challenge in Europe’s EV market
ChatGPT CEO signals policy to alert authorities over suicidal youth after teen’s death
The British legal mafia hit back: Banksy mural of judge beating protester is scrubbed from London court
Surpassing Musk: Larry Ellison becomes the richest man in the world
Embarrassment for Starmer: He fired the ambassador photographed on Epstein’s 'pedophile island'
Manhunt after 'skilled sniper' shot Charlie Kirk. Footage: Suspect running on rooftop during panic
Effective Protest Results: Nepal’s Prime Minister Resigns as Youth-Led Unrest Shakes the Nation
Qatari prime minister says Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages
King Charles and Prince Harry Share First In-Person Moment in 19 Months
Starmer Establishes Economic ‘Budget Board’ to Centralise Policy and Rebuild Business Trust
France Erupts in Mass ‘Block Everything’ Protests on New PM’s First Day
Poland Shoots Down Russian Drones in Airspace Violation During Ukraine Attack
Brazilian police say ex-President Bolsonaro had planned to flee to Argentina seeking asylum
Trinidad Leader Applauds U.S. Naval Strike and Advocates Forceful Action Against Traffickers
Kim Jong Un Oversees Final Test of New High-Thrust Solid-Fuel Rocket Engine
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Macron Appoints Sébastien Lecornu as Prime Minister Amid Budget Crisis and Political Turmoil
Supreme Court temporarily allows Trump to pause billions in foreign aid
Charlie Sheen says his father, Martin Sheen, turned him in to the police: 'The greatest betrayal possible'
Vatican hosts first Catholic LGBTQ pilgrimage
×