(NewsNation) — A group of Texas-based researchers are developing a vaccine that could help combat the opioid crisis.

The vaccine, which so far has been tested in mice, aims to block the ability of fentanyl to enter the brain.

Dr. Colin Hail, a research associate professor at the University of Houston and one of the specialists working on the vaccine, joined “NewsNation Prime” to discuss the breakthrough.

“The present treatments that we have are not working. So we need a novel treatment strategy. And I believe our anti-fentanyl vaccine will address this problem,” he explained.

Hail said the vaccine could stop an accidental overdose if the individual has been previously vaccinated and could also work as a relapse prevention agent.

However, it could be years before the anti-fentanyl vaccine is available for human consumption. “We hope to start Phase I clinical trials in humans in about 12 months … then we would have to go through Phase II and Phase III, which would take about two to three years,” Hail explained.