Oxford University coronavirus vaccine offers some hope
A coronavirus vaccine created by the University of Oxford appears safe and induces a strong immune response within the body, the first phase of human trials have revealed.
Doses of the vaccine were given to 1,077 healthy adults aged between 18 and 55 in five UK hospitals in April and May as part of the phase one clinical trial and results, published in the 'Lancet' medical journal. The results show they induced strong antibody and T-cell immune responses for up to 56 days after they were given.T-cells are crucial for maintaining protection against the virus for years.
The findings are seen as promising, but experts feel it is too soon to know if this is enough to offer protection as larger trials get underway.
"There is still much work to be done before we can confirm if our vaccine will help manage the Covid-19 pandemic, but these early results hold promise,” said Professor Sarah Gilbert, co-author of the study.
"As well as continuing to test our vaccine in phase 3 trials, we need to learn more about the virus - for example, we still do not know how strong an immune response we need to provoke to effectively protect against SARS-CoV-2 infection. If our vaccine is effective, it is a promising option as these types of vaccine can be manufactured at large scale," she said.
Booster dose
Scientists behind the trials found the response could be even greater after a second dose.