Oxford University professor claims there is an 80% chance of developing the long-awaited vaccine by this time • "Human vaccine trial will start in about two weeks"
Illustration // Photo: Reuters
Professor Sarah Gilbert of the University of Oxford, UK, currently leading the search for a vaccine for the corona virus, says there is an 80% chance that the vaccine will be ready by September.
Last month, she hoped the vaccine could be developed by the end of 2020, but has now approved the most optimistic scenario after it appears that human trials will begin in the next two weeks.
Corona spread in the world // Photo: Reuters, Gil Kramer // Edit: Eden Barel
Despite earlier claims that vaccine production could take 18 months, in an interview with the Daily Mail, Professor Gilbert claims that "if all goes well," there is a chance that by September it will be vaccinated. "I think there's a high chance it'll work based on other things we've done with that kind of vaccine," she told the Times.
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At the same time, health experts say the corona virus is changing at a slower rate than some other respiratory viruses, especially flu. There are currently several different strains to the virus, but scientists say the mutations are not very different from the virus originating in Wuhan, China, and they have no more serious effects. This means that once the vaccine is available, it will provide protection against the local virus and also against mutations - and for several years.
Dr. Mark Schleiss, a professor in the Department of Pediatric Infectious Diseases and Immunology at the University of Minnesota, said: "Flu, for example, varies every year and that is why researchers should develop vaccines to protect us from the most common strains. The corona virus has changed, and right now, at least eight strains are circulating around the world, but its mutations are very similar to the original virus. "