COVID-19 vaccine research takes big step forward

Oxford: A big step has been taken in creating a safe, effective and affordable vaccine to stop the spread of COVID-19, after one that was created by scientists at Oxford University delivered strong immune responses during trials, and was considered safe to administer.
The vaccine was created by a team of scientists at Oxford Vaccine Group (Department of Paediatrics) and Oxford University’s Jenner Institute. The results of the Phase I/II trial published yesterday in the scientific journal, The Lancet, indicate no early safety concerns and induces strong immune responses in both parts of the immune system.
“The Phase I/II data for our coronavirus vaccine shows that the vaccine did not lead to any unexpected reactions and had a similar safety profile to previous vaccines of this type,” said Professor Andrew Pollard, Chief investigator of the Oxford Vaccine Trial at Oxford University and co-author of the study.
“The immune responses observed following vaccination are in line with what previous animal studies have shown are associated with protection against the SARS-CoV-2 virus, although we must continue with our rigorous clinical trial programme to confirm this in humans,” he added.
“We saw the strongest immune response in the 10 participants who received two doses of the vaccine, indicating that this might be a good strategy for vaccination,” Professor Pollard continued.