DThe weapon against the corona virus is called “mRNA-1273”. The vaccine candidate of the US company Moderna is to be tested on humans for the first time in the next few weeks, says Anthony Fauci, director of the American National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID). The drug produced an immune response in mice.
But mice are not human, and vaccine approval is subject to strict conditions. First, he has to prove in tests that it is harmless to humans before he is then tested in larger studies for its actual purpose. This takes a while. Even with an accelerated procedure: A vaccine will be available in a year at the earliest, says Fauci.
If “mRNA-1273” lives up to hopes, it will also usher in a new era in vaccine history.
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