Beijing (dpa) - For the first time, a possible vaccine against the coronavirus has been shown to be at least partially effective in human tests.
The active ingredient Ad5-nCoV was found to be safe and well tolerated in the so-called phase 1 trial, according to a study published by the Beijing Institute of Biotechnology in the journal "The Lancet" on Friday. Above all, however, he generated an immune response to the Sars-CoV-2 virus in the human body. However, further attempts are necessary to find out whether this reaction also prevents infection with the virus.
"These results represent an important milestone," said institute professor Wei Chen, who was responsible for the study in Beijing. A single dose of Ad5-nCoV is therefore sufficient to generate virus-specific, neutralizing antibodies and a corresponding reaction of special defense cells (T cells) in the test subjects in 14 days. He advised that the results be interpreted "carefully". "There is a promising vision for developing Covid-19 vaccines, but we are still a long way from a vaccine that is available to everyone," he said.
Ad5-nCoV was administered to 108 healthy volunteers in Wuhan, China, and the effects evaluated up to 28 days later. A final evaluation is said to take place after six months. A double-blind study with a control group was also started in Wuhan as a phase 2 trial with the active ingredient. According to "Lancet", more than 100 possible active substances against Covid-19 are currently under development worldwide.
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