The coronavirus pandemic, which originated from China in December last year has now reached almost all the countries in the world, killing more than 5.3 lakh people and infecting over 11 million. The virus causes deadly Covid-19 disease officially known as SARS-COV-2 and as of now, there is no cure. Although there are a few medicines like REMDESIVIR being used in the treatment of coronavirus patients, their efficiency is not 100 per cent. With more and more cases being reported every day, scientists and researchers across the world are scrambling to develop a vaccine for the Covid-19.
Health experts have made it clear that the virus is here to stay for a long time if its cure is not found. As of now, as many as 80 groups of scientists and researchers are racing against time to develop a vaccine. While there are more than 100 potential coronavirus vaccines undergoing clinical trials at different stages, UK's Oxford University is leading the race, followed by US-based pharmaceutical giant Moderna. India is also in the race to develop the world's first coronavirus vaccine.
Below is the status report of coronavirus candidate vaccines
UK coronavirus candidate vaccine status
Scientists and researchers at Jenner Institute of Oxford University in the UK have developed a candidate vaccine for coronavirus. Named AXD1222, Oxford's candidate coronavirus vaccine is leading the race. The candidate vaccine is now in the third phase of human trials and scientists are working at break-neck speed to develop an effective coronavirus vaccine.
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Moderna coronavirus candidate vaccine status
Named MRNA-1273, US pharma giant Moderna has also developed a candidate vaccine for the coronavirus pandemic. The vaccine is being developed in association with Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute and is currently in the second phase of human trial.
China coronavirus candidate vaccine status
China is the country where the virus had first originated. Hence, Beijing has the pressure to save the face by developing a cure. Chinese scientists had in May claimed that they have tested successfully their first vaccine against COVID-19 in monkeys of Indian origin. China has developed an inactivated COVID-19 vaccine candidate, which is now in phase 1 and 2 trials.
India coronavirus vaccine status
India's Bharat Biotech International Ltd. has reportedly developed a candidate vaccine named Covaxin for coronavirus. The vaccine is has cleared clinical trials and will begin human trials from July 7. The Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR) has set the August 15 deadline for the launch of Covaxin. Besides this, there are 29 other coronavirus vaccines that are in different stages of development.
Germany coronavirus vaccine status
BioNTech-Pfizer is the candidate vaccine being co-developed by German biotech firm BioNTech and US pharmaceutical giant Pfizer. The vaccine has completed phase 1 human trials. The vaccine will now be tested on a large group of healthy people (nearly 30,000). The next stage of human trials is likely to begin from the last week of July.
There are several other candidate vaccines in different stages of trials being developed by Russia, France, Israel and Italy. Recently, Israeli Defence Minister Naftali Bennett has claimed a "significant breakthrough" in the process of developing a vaccine for coronavirus. He said that scientists at Israel's Institute for Biological Research (IIBR) have developed an antibody to the novel coronavirus. However, there has not been any significant update about it after that. In India,