The Chinese military has been given the green light to use a coronavirus vaccine developed by its research unit and a biotechnology company, according to a report.
The Central Military Commission approved the use of the candidate vaccine Ad5-nCoV on Thursday for a period of one year, CanSino Biologics said in a document, Reuters reported.
It was jointly developed by CanSino and the Beijing Biotechnology Institute at the Academy of Military Medical Sciences. The company said that clinical trials showed that the vaccine was safe and showed some efficacy, according to the media outlet.
Ad5-nCoV is one of eight Chinese COVID-19 vaccine candidates approved for human trials at home and abroad. It also obtained approval for human testing in Canada.
“Ad5-nCoV is currently limited to military use only and its use cannot be expanded to a broader vaccination range without the approval of the Logistics Support Department,” CanSino said, referring to the Central Military Commission.
CanSino declined to disclose to Reuters whether the inoculation is mandatory or optional, citing trade secrets.
Phase 1 and 2 clinical trials of the CanSino vaccine candidate showed that it has the potential to be effective, but its commercial success cannot be guaranteed, the company said.
Earlier this month, China offered two other vaccine candidates to employees of state-owned companies traveling abroad.
Separately, AMS received approval earlier this month to test its second experimental COVID-19 vaccine in humans.
No vaccine has yet been approved for commercial use, but more than a dozen vaccines from more than 100 candidates are being tested in humans worldwide.
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