Russia is in the running for a scientifically proven and tested COVID-19 vaccine but its second treatment announced this week has yet to pass regulatory requirements - as does its first.
Putin Says Early Trials For Second Vaccine Successful
Russia president Vladimir Putin said in a news briefing Wednesday the government had approved a second coronavirus vaccine developed by Novosibirk's Vektor.
The Siberian biotechnology company was a Soviet-era bioweapons laboratory. As with the first government-approved vaccine, the second has yet to pass health and safety regulations.
However, Putin said the second vaccine's early trials were successful. The trials involved 100 volunteers, Putin said.
Called EpiVacCorona, the treatment is described as a "peptide-based shot." Before going through the Russian Health Ministry's registration process, the vaccine must undergo safety trials to determine it has no side effects.
Russia's first vaccine, Sputnik V, has started the second stage of phase-three safety and efficacy trials, with Putin saying at the time of the vaccine's "registration" that his daughter was given the shot.
As for EpiVacCorona, Putin said both Anna Popova, head of the Russian consumer safety watchdog, and deputy prime minister Tatyana Golikova had been given the vaccine.
Johnson & Johnson Halts Trials
Meanwhile, Johnson & Johnson said it had stopped trials on its vaccine.
The pharmaceutical company announced earlier this week the trials had to be paused following a participant's report of an "adverse event" that J&J chief financial officer Joseph Wolk referred to as an unexplained illness.
Wolk said the stoppage should "reassure the public that every scientific, medical and ethical standard is being applied."
In a statement, the company said it couldn't give details to protect the participant's privacy. However, it is looking into a supposed side effect that the participant experienced.
It is also unclear whether the participant was given a placebo or the vaccine. Head of Janssen research and development at Johnson & Johnson, Dr. Mathai Mammen, said gathering information might take "a few days at minimum."
J&J is already in the final stages of its clinical trials along with three other vaccine developers.
Pfizer To Conduct Tests On Children
Pfizer also came out with big news this week, revealing it had received permission from the Food and Drug Administration to include participants as young as 12 in its late-stage trials for a potential coronavirus vaccine.
In a statement on its website, Pfizer said the modified protocol in its study would help researchers "to better understand the potential safety and efficacy of the vaccine in individuals from more ages and backgrounds."
Unlike other vaccine studies, Pfizer's trials have concentrated on diversity and include Native Americans, Asian, Hispanic and African American participants.
The New York-based company is the first in the U.S. to include children under 16 years in its clinical trials.
Latest COVID-19 World Update
According to data from Johns Hopkins University, world coronavirus infections have reached more than 38.4 million while there have been more than 1.09 million deaths.
The U.S. remains the hardest-hit with its infections inching closer to 8 million. India follows with more than 7.2 million confirmed COVID-19 cases.
Brazil has more than 5.1 million confirmed coronavirus cases and Russia has more than 1.3 million confirmed infections.
