Brasilia (AFP) – A Chinese-made vaccine against the new coronavirus entered the final stage of testing Tuesday in Brazil, where volunteers received the first doses of what officials hope will change the situation in the global pandemic.
The vaccine, developed by Chinese private pharmaceutical firm Sinovac Biotech, became the third in the world to participate in phase 3 clinical trials, or large-scale human trials, the last step before regulatory approval.
“We live in unique and historical times, and that is why I wanted to be part of this trial,” said the 27-year-old doctor who received the first dose at the Hospital Clinico de Sao Paulo.
His name was withheld for confidentiality.
About 9,000 health workers in six Brazilian states will receive the vaccine, known as CoronaVac, in two doses over the next three months, according to the study.
Sao Paulo governor Joao Doria said initial results on Monday were expected within 90 days.
Sinovac is partnering with a Brazilian public health research center, the Butantan Institute, for the trials.
If the vaccine is safe and effective, the institute will have the right to produce 120 million doses under the agreement, according to officials.
Brazil is the second most affected country in the coronavirus pandemic, after the United States.
Its death toll exceeded 80,000 on Monday, and it has recorded 2.1 million infections.
Because the virus is still spreading rapidly in the South American country, it is considered an ideal testing ground for vaccine candidates.
Brazil is also helping to carry out Phase 3 testing of another experimental vaccine, developed by the University of Oxford and the pharmaceutical firm AstraZeneca.
It has a similar agreement to produce that vaccine domestically if it succeeds in testing, which is also being conducted in Britain and South Africa.
Brazilian health regulators announced on Monday that they also authorized Phase 1, 2 and 3 trials of two more vaccines, developed by US firm Pfizer and BioNTech of Germany.
Researchers around the world are competing to develop and test a vaccine against the virus. There are more than 150 projects so far.
Studies published Monday in the British medical journal The Lancet found that two vaccine candidates were safe and elicited an immune response in Phase 2 trials: the Oxford vaccine and another Chinese-made vaccine, developed by the pharmaceutical firm CanSino Biologics and the Beijing Biotechnology Institute.
