On the way to an Israeli vaccine? The Minister of Defense and the Deputy Prime Minister visited the Institute in Ness Ziona and updated on progress • "Experiments should begin after the Tishrei holidays"

The Biological Institute in Ness Ziona will begin conducting experiments with the corona vaccine in humans, on the orders of Defense Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Bnei Gantz. This morning (Thursday), Minister Ganz visited the Biological Institute, together with the institute's director, Prof. Shmuel Shapira, and the assistant minister for defense. During the visit, the Minister was presented with advances in the development of the corona vaccine and antibody.

On the way to an Israeli vaccine against Corona? The Biological Institute in Ness Ziona will begin conducting experiments on humans // Photo: Tal Oz / Ministry of Defense

"Israel Today" has learned that the vaccine and its production line will only be in Israel. The development of the antibodies, which are at a less advanced stage, will be carried out abroad for reasons of costs and capabilities that do not exist in the country.

At the end of the visit, Ganz said: "Experiments on humans should begin after the Tishrei holidays. I would like to thank you first of all, the people in the Ministry of Defense and the people at the institute who do a fantastic job. All the first successful experiments are very big news and very hopeful. "It is that the trials will begin in humans after the Tishrei holidays. This will be done in coordination with the Ministry of Health and according to all the processes required in terms of medical safety."

Ganz added: "Just as the IDF has special units that break in and open the way for it - you are the patrol of the State of Israel in the Ministry of Defense in the field of vaccines. I am at your service and I want to involve myself in every issue that can be influenced. "

The director of the Biological Institute, Prof. Shapira: "The Minister of Defense, the Deputy Prime Minister, we set off 6 months ago, we received a boost from the Ministry of Defense, the Prime Minister's Office, we had good interaction with the Ministry of Health, and of course you personally accompany us. "We run all the time and in fact I am proud to show that there are receipts. There is an excellent vaccine, there are regulatory processes that the vaccine has to go through according to the schedule you specified, we start after the holidays with safety and efficacy experiments but we have the product in hand."

More on this topic:

• Netanyahu: "In the absence of a vaccine, we will have to find solutions"

• Israeli breakthrough in the fight against Corona: The Biological Institute has developed the first antibody of its kind to the virus

• Director of the Institute for Biological Research: "We are preparing for a vaccine for Corona"

The purpose of the first phase of the human experiment is to test its safety. To expedite processes in the Corona struggle, companies often unite the first and second stages. The essence of the second step is a small group experiment designed to test efficacy. Then, the third step is a mass experiment.

Participated in the preparation of the article: Meital Yasur Beit Or