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Fabrizio Chiodo, a Sicilian from Palermo, is 35 years old and the only foreigner who works in the Cuban state team in search of vaccines against Covid-19. Professor of Carbohydrate Chemistry and Immunology in Havana, with extensive experience in Spain and later in the Netherlands, he has recently returned to Italy at the Pozzuoli Cnr. Due to travel restrictions, jobs follow them from afar. “In mid-2021 Cuba will also have its vaccine, public and free,” he says.
Where are you now?
“There are four Cuban vaccines designed, developed and tested in trials out of 57 on the WHO list. Cuba produces 90 percent of the vaccines that are administered to its population, decades of experience in public research is crucial. Personally, I am working Sovereign 1 and Sovereign 2, which mean “sovereign”, of the four they are the most advanced in development “.
In what stage are the two Sovereigns?
“We plan to finish phase 3 within the first three months in 2021. That is the human clinical trial, where the efficacy of the vaccine is measured, and then start the vaccination campaign from June 2021, using different formulations. and targeting based on the age of the population “.
What scientific philosophy are you following?
“In practice, only one” piece “of the pre-existing vaccine formulation has been changed, thus using molecules already present in other formulations. Cuba has the only bivalent vaccine against meningococcus B and C, it has existed for 14 years, the base as an adjuvant That’s it. It had to be a highly scalable technology, which could produce many doses, therefore stable at different temperatures, useful in both the pediatric field and in the elderly. So instead of developing a vaccine again , we exploit what is already there. was “.
How many deaths has the pandemic caused in Cuba?
“Out of 11 and a half million there have been 145 deaths, relatively few. This is because Cuba has always combined the public health system with the academic and research world, and there is great trust around them. The country has the highest ratio between doctors and citizens, the general practitioner is almost an additional relative for each family. Over the years, Cuban doctors from around the world with solidarity brigades have experienced Ebola in Africa, as more Dengue is known and known. In short, for pandemics there was necessarily a very high form of care “.
Are the forms of protection against contagion also the classic ones in Cuba? That is, mask, spacing, etc.
“Yes, that’s it. The percentage of people recovered from Covid-19 is 92.5 percent, all treated with homemade drugs, given the embargo that has lasted 58 years. Over time the country, due to isolation, has a high-level biotech arsenal is created. “
Did the experience of the Cuban doctors who arrived in Lombardy and Piedmont during the first wave help to deal with the emergency served?
We received a first background from China, but also the Italian experience was certainly useful. To date, Cuba still has 40 brigades around the world, they are part of the island’s history of solidarity, and also allow us to refine our observation. and skills in the medical field. “
What destination will the Cuban vaccine have? Will he be left alone on the island?
“The main intention is to produce it for Cuba, but being a socialist country it will be distributed in all developing countries that request it free of charge. To date, Bio Cuba Pharma has 40,000 workers and already exports to 48 countries around the world. WHO also Cuba maintains a good institutional relationship. I must say that in the field of research nobody in the world is using our approaches, which nevertheless have a huge advantage: the costs are lower ”.
From your point of view, are “capitalist” vaccines a good product?
“I do not question the effectiveness of any vaccine on the market, absolutely, I can only be critical of how it is produced and distributed. The ‘bad guy’ is not Pfizer, so to speak, but I think the economic model itself. Contesting a vaccine that has passed the official steps, it would mean collapsing science. We all wonder, on the other hand, globally, how long the coverage will last, how it will work with the withdrawals, but precisely: these are issues that concern everyone “.
Are vaccines mandatory in Cuba?
“No, but I remember that in 2013 when I arrived, people asked us for news about the vaccine against lung cancer, which is currently also in clinical trials. All of them are made up of volunteers, while the rest of the companies give compensation. To say that we Cubans have a lot of faith in science and in the vaccination system. You don’t have to force anyone ”.
When will you publish the results of your research?
“Our products must be intellectually protected, we are working on them and patents are public but we are waiting for the green light from the patent office to publish in international scientific journals. Soon anyway ”.
Leaving the medical field, but are you a communist?
“Yes, the answer is yes, no mincing words. Only in Cuba can you work on a product that goes from the laboratory to the clinic in a totally public way. I do this work mainly for others, it is my ethics, which enters into complete with the work done on the island. “
