Potential COVID-19 Vaccine Developed by Oxford University Found to Be 'Protective' in Monkeys, Researchers Say It Stops Virus from Making Copies of Itself
The potential novel coronavirus vaccine is being developed by scientists at Oxford University's Jenner Institute. In a major breakthrough, the first results of the animal trial showed that the "ChAdOx1 nCoV-19" vaccine is protective in a small study of six monkeys. The promising findings has led to the start of human trials late last month.
New Delhi, May 15: The potential novel coronavirus vaccine is being developed by scientists at Oxford University's Jenner Institute. In a major breakthrough, the first results of the animal trial showed that the "ChAdOx1 nCoV-19" vaccine is protective in a small study of six monkeys. The promising finding has led to the start of human trials late last month. As of May 13, over 1000 volunteers have already participated in human trials of this vaccine. Italy Claims to Have Developed COVID-19 Vaccine Which Neutralises Coronavirus in Human Cells: Reports.
As per a report in the preprint server bioRxiv, monkeys were given a single shot of vaccine developed antibodies against COVID-19 within 14 days. However, all monkeys developed protective antibodies against the infection within 28 days before being exposed to a high dose of virus. The vaccine appeared to prevent lung damage and stopped the virus from making copies of itself. No Guarantee Coronavirus Vaccine Will be Developed, Says WHO Envoy David Nabarro.
Stephen Evans, Professor of Pharmacoepidemiology at London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, said that this development is "good news". “It is one of the hurdles to be passed by the Oxford vaccine and it has cleared it well," Evans was quoted as saying.
Globally, there are over 100 experimental vaccines under development to fight COVID-19 that has created havoc across the globe. If a vaccine is prepared then it could end the pandemic. However, finding one working vaccine and manufacturing enough doses is a huge challenge.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 15, 2020 02:13 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).