Figure 2: A timeline of Moderna mRNA-1273 vaccine.
This mRNA-1273 consists on the lipid Nano-particles (LNP), encapsulated
mRNA vaccine that encodes for stabilized condition of S proteins before
the fusion. The currently expected dose is 50 mcg. Moderna is ready to
lunch Phase 3 studies by summer, 2020. Hopefully it would be the
1st recommended vaccine against COVID-19 by the end of
2020.
INOVIO : This company has quickly developed vaccine against
COVID-19 as they are working since December on DNA vaccine for MERS,
caused by the same coronavirus. The company is expected to start
clinical trials of COVID-19 vaccine in May 2020 (Grein et al., 2020).
UNIVERSITY OF QUEENSLAND IN AUSTRALIA : Researchers are
developing vaccine by growing viral proteins in cell culture. They
expect to start clinical trials by the end of May 2020 (Duan et al.,
2020).
CUREVAC BIOTECH : This company in Turbingen, Germany will begin
a human trial of mRNA based vaccine in June 2020 (Kirkwood, 2019).
Another trial is by the Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research
institute in Seattle, USA, which is under consideration. In this trial,
vaccine is injected to 45 healthy volunteers which contain a part of
genetic material duplicated from SARS-CoV-2. Because this vaccine does
not have the actual SARS-CoV-2, the individuals will not develop
COVID-19 (Philippidis, 2020).
In UK, Sarah Gilbert and her colleague at Oxford University begin
imminent trials on humans and animals of ChAdOx1 vaccine and it is
predicted that the vaccine will be accessible in late of 2020 (Alharbi
et al., 2017).
In China CanSino Biologics, in participation with the academy of
Military Medical sciences, is also working to formulate the recombinant
vaccine. A clinical trial has begun among 108 volunteers in Wuhan aged
between 18-60 years (Cohen, 2020).
However, according to the director of the National institute of Allergy
and Infectious Diseases, a vaccine won’t be available for widespread use
for at least another 12-18 months (Cai et al., 2020).