Volunteers get 2nd shot of 25mcg dose of Nanocovax
Three volunteers getting the first shot of the 25mcg dose of Nanocovax, the first Vietnamese COVID-19 vaccine to be tested on humans, last December received the second on January 14.
Medical workers prepare to inject Nanocovax into volunteers (Photo: VNA)
Hanoi (VNA) – Three volunteersgetting the first shot of the 25mcg dose of Nanocovax, the first VietnameseCOVID-19 vaccine to be tested on humans, last December received the second onJanuary 14.
The three, comprising one male and two femalesaged between 20 and 25, are among the first 20 volunteers given the vaccine onDecember 17, 2020.
Prof. Do Quyet, Director of the Hanoi-basedVietnam Military Medical University, said the second shot comes 28 days afterthe first one.
As volunteers haven’t shown abnormal symptomsafter getting the first injection, the 25mcg, 50mcg, and 75mcg doses ofNanocovax have been tested on remaining groups of volunteers safely.
So far, all volunteers have been in stablehealth condition. Some felt pain at the injection site or mild fever, but thesymptoms disappeared after 24 hours, Quyet noted.
Assoc. Prof. Chu Van Men, Director of theuniversity’s clinical trial centre, said 50 percent of the first phase of humantrials has completed.
The university has received more than 500applications for Nanocovax trials, but only 51 are eligible for joining thefirst phase of testing due to strict selection criteria.
Phase I, with the doses of 25mcg, 50mcg, and75mcg injected, aims to evaluate the vaccine’s safety. Phase II is set toconduct testing on 560 people and begin in February to assess the vaccine’seffectiveness. Meanwhile, the third phase will need at least 1,500 - 3,000volunteers, including those in other countries.
If everything goes as planned, the first twophases will finish in February and be followed by the third one when half ofPhase II is completed.
Vietnam is one of the 40 countries that haveconducted human trials of a COVID-19 vaccine.
Nanocovax is developed by the NanogenPharmaceutical Biotechnology JSC, basing on recombinant protein technology.
The country also has several other COVID-19candidate vaccines being developed, by the Institute of Vaccines and MedicalBiologicals (IVAC), the Company for Vaccine and Biological Production No.1(VABIOTECH), and the Centre for Research and Production of Vaccines andBiologicals (POLYVAC)./.
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The highest dose, 75mcg, of Nanocovax, a COVID-19 vaccine developed by Vietnam, was given to three volunteers in Hanoi on January 12 as part of the first stage of human trials.
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Medical workers prepare to inject Nanocovax into volunteers (Photo: VNA) 
