According to conservationists, half a million sharks could be killed for their natural oil to produce a coronavirus vaccine.
An ingredient used in some COVID-19 Vaccine candidates are squalene, a natural oil made in the liver Shark.
Squalene is currently used as an adjuvant in medicine – an ingredient that enhances the effectiveness of a vaccine by building a strong immune response.
Scientists are testing artificial alternatives to avoid endangering shark populations.
British pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline currently uses shark squalene Flu vaccines.
The company said it would produce one billion doses of the subsidiary for potential use Corona virus vaccines In the month of May.
About 3,000 sharks are needed for a ton of squallin ka ract va.
The California-based group, Shark Ellis, suggests that if the world’s population were to receive a single dose of the Covid-19 vaccine with liver oil, 250,000 sharks would need to be slaughtered, depending on the scale of the use.
If the global population needed two doses for vaccination, which, according to researchers, this would increase to half a million.
In order not to endanger the shark population, scientists are testing an alternative to squalene – an artificial version made from fermented cane.
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Stephanie Brandley, founder and executive director of Shark Allies, said: “Farming from wild animals is never sustainable, especially if it is a top predator that does not breed in large numbers.
“A lot of how big this epidemic is and how long it will last is unknown, and then how many versions we will have to go through. If we continue to use sharks, the number of sharks taken for this product could be really high, year after year. “
Conservationists estimate that about 30 million sharks are killed each year for squalene, which is also used in cosmetics and machine oil.
There are fears that a sudden increase in demand for liver oil could threaten the population and endanger more species as many species rich in squalene, such as the Zulper Shark, are already vulnerable.
