Researchers from Sinovac Biotech Ltd, China’s leading biopharmaceutical company, has stated that the company is 99% sure that its COVID-19 vaccine called CoronaVac is effective. As per reports, Sinovac is currently undergoing stage 2 trials with more than 1,000 volunteers participating. Luo Baishan, a researcher at Sinovac when asked whether the vaccine will end up being successful, he replied “Yes, yes. It must be successful and we are 99% sure.” The company came into the limelight last month when it published results of the research in the academic journal of science which claimed that the vaccine protected monkeys from infection by COVID-19.
Researchers and pharmaceutical companies around the world are racing to develop an effective COVID-19 vaccine. More than 110 vaccines for coronavirus are being developed with at least 10 candidates already in human trials. Sinovac is now heading towards the stage 3 trials. Due to low number of COVID-19 cases in China, the biotech is planning to conduct stage 3 trials in other countries. As per reports they are already in a very preliminary stage of discussion with several European countries including the UK for trials.
Sinovac secured USD 15 million in funding to accelerate its COVID-19 vaccine development and is constructing a commercial vaccine production plant that is expected to manufacture up to 100 million doses of CoronaVac annually. The company is fuelled with optimism about the vaccine and believes that even if it’s a success, they still have a long way to go before its global release.
