The southern hemisphere’s first human trial of a coronavirus vaccine is starting today in Australia, and the results could be ready in in just over a month.
The trial by American pharmaceutical company Novavax is taking place in Melbourne’s Alfred Hospital, involving 113 healthy Aussies aged 18 to 59.
Results are expected as soon as July 2020, and if things look good, the trial will be expanded around the world, including in the US.
“Administering our vaccine in the first participants of this clinical trial is a significant achievement, bringing us one step closer toward addressing the fundamental need for a vaccine in the fight against the global COVID‑19 pandemic,” Novavax CEO and president Stanley C. Erck said in a statement.
The company said it could potentially produce 100 million doses of the vaccine by the year’s end. In fact, it will start producing the vaccine ahead of time, so that if it’s proven to work, there will already be plenty to go around.
Novavax has received $388 million in funding from the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness, an organisation founded by Bill Gates. This is not a secret, despite what conspiracy theorists claim, and is a purely philanthropic endeavour.
The World Health Organisation estimates over 100 coronavirus vaccines are being developed around the world in a race to combat the pandemic.
But unlike other potential vaccines which use unproven mRNA methods to stimulate an immune response, this vaccine sends the virus’ spike protein directly into the body to stimulate an immune response.
This is similar to the vaccines already used to against diseases such as HPV, Hepatitis B and shingles.
