18 November 2020
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced that all the data and analysis related to emergency use authorisations (EUA) of Covid-19 vaccines and drugs will be made public. Stephen Hahn, the FDA commissioner, stated that this transparency step was being taken to restore public confidence in FDA’s EUA review process.
Moderna has announced that it will supply mRNA-1273, its Covid-19 vaccine candidate, to the UK starting March, according to Reuters. The supply process will take place after the company receives regulatory approval for the vaccine in the UK. Moderna did not announce the number of doses it will be supplying. The UK Government announced on Monday 16 November that it had secured 5 million doses of Moderna’s mRNA Covid-19 vaccine, however, there is a possibility of more doses being secured in the future.
Researchers confirmed that Sinovac Biotech’s Covid-19 vaccine candidate CoronaVac induced a quick immune response to the SARS-CoV-2 virus in its early and mid-stage trials. However, the trial results also found that level of antibodies were lower than people who had recovered from the disease.
Anna Popova, head of the Russian Federal Service for the Oversight of Consumer Protection and Welfare, announced that Russia has initiated its post-registration trials of the EpiVacCorona vaccine to fight Covid-19. Russia gave the first regulatory approval to the Sputnik V vaccine in August, while the second is being developed by the Vector State Research Centre of Virology and Biotechnology.
