Reports show that Seattle has tested its first set of participants in a clinical trial for the coronavirus vaccine. Developed by the NIH and Massachusetts’ Moderna Inc, this particular candidate is code-named mRNA-1273.
With funding provided by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the experimental dose was administered on Mar 16 at Seattle’s Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute.
Public health officials say it will take up to a year to 18 months to fully validate any potential vaccine; but until then, testing has begun with 45 young, healthy volunteers, with different doses of shots being administered. Officials note that volunteers have zero chance of infection, as the shots don’t contain the virus itself.
They add that the trial’s goals are to confirm that there are no worrisome side effects with the current vaccine ahead of any mass producing and further administering.
Ahead of Monday’s experimental trial, Kaiser Permanente study leader Dr. Lisa Jackson stated, “We’re team coronavirus now. Everyone wants to do what they can in this emergency.”
In addition to this vaccine candidate, others are being researched and created around the world; like one made by Inovio Pharmaceuticals; which is set to begin studies next month in the US, China and South Korea.
