Researchers around the world are racing to develop a vaccine against Covid-19, with more than 170 candidate vaccines now being followed by the World Health Organization (WHO).
Vaccines usually require years of testing and extra time to produce on a scale, but scientists hope to develop a coronavirus vaccine within 12 to 18 months.
Vaccines mimic the virus – as part of the virus – they protect against, and stimulate the immune system to develop antibodies. They have to follow higher safety standards than other medicines because they are given to millions of healthy people.
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In the pre-clinical stage from tests, researchers give the vaccine to animals to see if it triggers an immune response.
In phase 1 from clinical trials, the vaccine is given to a small group of people to determine if it is safe and to learn more about the immune response it provokes.
In phase 2, the vaccine is given to hundreds of people so that scientists can learn more about its safety and correct dosage.
In phase 3, the vaccine is given to thousands of people to confirm its safety – including rare side effects – and effectiveness. These files include a control group receiving a placebo.
Faxes in clinical trials
Phase in progress
Phase completed
University of Oxford / AstraZeneca
Oxford University vaccine is delivered via a chimpanzee virus, called the vaccine vector. The vector contains the genetic code of the protein spikes found on the coronavirus and triggers a strong immune response in the human body. The vaccine is in a combined phase 2/3 trial in the UK and has recently gone into phase 3 studies in South Africa and Brazil.
BioNTech / Fosun Pharma / Pfizer
American biotech company Moderna is developing a vaccine candidate using messenger RNA (as mRNA for short) to trick the body into producing even viral proteins. No mRNA vaccine has ever been approved for an infectious disease, and Moderna has never marketed a product. But proponents of the vaccine say it could be easier to produce mass than traditional vaccines.
Chinese company Sinovac is developing a vaccine based on inactivated Covid-19 particles. The vaccine has shown a promising safety profile in the early stages of testing and has now moved on to Phase 3 tears in Brazil.
Beijing Institute of Biological Products / Sinopharm
Wuhan Institute of Biological Products / Sinopharm
CanSino Biologics Inc./Beijing Institute of Biotechnology
Cadila Healthcare Limited
Osaka University / AnGes / Takara Bio
Janssen pharmaceutical companies
Kentucky Bioprocessing, Inc.
Inovio Pharmaceuticals / International Vaccine Institute
Institute of Medical Biology, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences
Anhui Zhifei Longcom Biopharmaceuticals / Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences
University of Queensland / CSL / Seqirus
Medigen Vaccine Biologics Corporation / NIAID / Dynavax
People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Academy of Military Sciences / Walvax Biotech.
Institute Pasteur / Themis / Univ. of Pittsburg CVR / Merck Sharp & Dohme
Clover Biopharmaceuticals Inc./GSK/Dynavax
ReiThera / LEUKOCARE / Univercells
Gamaleya Research Institute
University of Melbourne / Murdoch Children’s Research Institute
The Murdoch Children’s Research Institute in Australia is conducting a Phase 3 trial with a nearly 100-year-old tuberculosis vaccine. The vaccine is not thought to directly protect against Covid-19, but may stimulate the body’s non-specific immune response.
Source: WHO. Last updated 17 aug
.