Researchers on the University of Houston have created a vaccine which will mitigate the opioid epidemic within the U.S. The vaccine can counter the antagonistic effects of fentanyl, a synthetic opioid that authorities say is 50-100 times stronger than morphine.

Professor Colin Haile, the lead researcher, said that the vaccine was developed keeping in mind the people who find themselves hooked on the drug and need to quit. “If the drug doesn’t get into the brain, there aren’t any effects,” Haile said.

“There aren’t any euphoric effects, and there aren’t any lethal effects as well,” he said, based on ABC News. The vaccine will allow the fentanyl to be eliminated from the body via the kidneys.

The newly developed vaccine still requires approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for human trials. Toxicology studies of the vaccine are still pending, Haile explained.

If approved, the vaccine is anticipated to be available in the following three to 4 years, the outlet reported. “We’re close, but each time I give it some thought, I get much more motivated,” Haile said.

The University of Houston said on its website that the vaccine may act as a “relapse prevention agent” for people attempting to quit the harmful drug. “While research reveals Opioid Use Disorder (OUD) is treatable, an estimated 80% of those depending on the drug suffer a relapse,” it added.

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) says that fentanyl was originally approved for pharmaceutical usage for cancer patients. It was majorly used for pain relief and was later “diverted for abuse.”

“Fentanyl is added to heroin to extend its potency, or be disguised as highly potent heroin,” the DEA website says. “Many users consider that they’re purchasing heroin and truly do not know that they’re purchasing fentanyl – which regularly leads to overdose deaths,” it adds.

In accordance with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, deaths involving synthetic opioids have been on the rise. “Death rates increased by over 56% from 2019 to 2020 and accounted for over 82% of all opioid-involved deaths in 2020,” the agency said.