A Chinese pharmaceutical company has caused quite a stir in the scientific community in recent days, following an announcement that it has made significant progress in developing a vaccine for the novel coronavirus.
As part of the experiment, the researchers injected the vaccine into a group of monkeys. Those monkeys were then infected with the coronavirus along with a group of unvaccinated monkeys serving as a control group.
The vaccinated monkeys did not develop any coronavirus symptoms, while the unvaccinated monkeys did develop symptoms, with some dying, according to news reports.
According to the reports, which could not be independently verified, the experimental vaccine is produced using a technology that is readily available and fairly easy to use, in which batches can be made in large quantities within a short time – a significant requirement during the current crisis.
One claim criticizing the study regards the choice of monkeys as a test model, seeing as they develop a different disease than that of humans.
Countries around the world have been working develop a vaccine for COIVD-19. Industry experts claim that this is the fastest and most intense race for a vaccine in the modern era, although optimistic forecasts talk about production and supply of a vaccine only within a year to a year-and-a-half.Translated by Jerusalem Post Staff.