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Domestic COVID-19 vaccine developer gets financial support

VGP – The Government has decided to provide more than VND 8.8 billion (US$385,000) from the national COVID-19 vaccine fund to aid first and second phase of clinical trials of vaccine Covivac developed by the Nha Trang-based Institute of Vaccines and Medical Biologicals (IVAC).

August 16, 2021 9:00 PM GMT+7

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Covivac, one of four indigenous vaccines, got approval from the Ministry of Health to start second phase of human trials in the northern province of Thai Binh with the participation of 375 volunteers.

IVAC Director Duong Huu Thai was quoted as saying that the volunteers will be divided into two age groups, one aged above 18 and the other aged over 60.

The volunteers will receive shots of varying doses: 3mcg and 6 mcg. 

Covivac underwent pre-clinical trials in India, the U.S., and Viet Nam, the IVAC Director said, adding that the results from those trials showed that the vaccine has satisfied all conditions for testing on humans.

In the first stage of human trials, 120 volunteers aged between 18 and 59 participated in the trials of Covivac. They were divided into five groups - 20 who receive the placebo, and 100 who are injected with the vaccine at three different levels of 1, 3 and 10 micrograms.

An interim report which was sent to the National Council of Ethics in Biomedical Research assessed that the vaccine is safe, well tolerated, and immunogenic across all age groups. /.

By Huong Giang